By: Shubham Ghosh
BHAGWANT Mann, the first Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief minister of the northern Indian state of Punjab was in the headlines on Thursday (7) not for hard political news. Instead, the 48-year-old got married to Gurpreet Kaur, a doctor, in what was his second wedding. Also, one doesn’t often get to see a political leader getting married in India, where leaders tend to get a certain mystique by remaining single.
The marriage was a low-profile affair which took place at Mann’s residence in Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and its neighbouring state Haryana. Security was tightened outside the chief minister’s house. AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, who is the chief minister of Delhi, congratulated Mann over his marriage.
भगवंत मान और गुरप्रीत भाभी को विवाह की ढेरों शुभकामनायें। आप दोनों को भगवान खूब खुश रखे और दुनिया की सारी ख़ुशियाँ दें। https://t.co/7WjPTjuMGp
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) July 7, 2022
The bride, Kaur, holds an MBBS degree from an Indian university and is the youngest of three sisters. It is believed to be an arranged marriage with Mann’s mother Harpal Kaur acquainted with Kaur’s kin.
Mann was earlier married to Inderpreet Kaur but they split in 2015, a year after the former joined Kejriwal’s AAP. Kaur left India after the divorce. Mann has two children from his first marriage – son Dilshan and daughter Seerat Kaur – and they are studying.
While the cause of the couple’s divorce is not known officially, it is reported that it happened because Mann could not dedicate enough time to his family after becoming a political figure.
Is that why Indian politicians do not marry?