Kumbh Mela fame Monalisa's marriage runs into trouble, NCST calls it illegal, husband booked for abduction

A month after Kumbh Mela fame Monalisa Bhosle married Farmaan Khan at a Poovar temple in Thiruvananthapuram, an investigation report of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has concluded that the wedding was illegal and that Monalisa was a minor. This finding, however, does not align with the scrutiny of documents done by the Local Self-Government Department (LSGD), Kerala, for the registration of Monalisa’s marriage.

The NCST initiated an inquiry based on a complaint filed by social activist and advocate hailing from Nagpur, Pratham Dubey. A two-member inquiry panel comprising P Kalyan Reddy, Director, NCST, and Prakash Kumar, legal advisor to the NCST, visited Kerala and Maheshwar district in Madhya Pradesh and submitted the report.

Pratham Dubey told Onmanorama that the panel visited the temple at Poovar, spoke to authorities and found the documents suspicious. “They went to Maheshwar district, spoke to the girl’s parents and could not arrive at a conclusion regarding the age. The panel then collected the documents from the Maheshwar government hospital and found that Monalisa’s mother was admitted at 5 pm and delivered at 5.50 pm on December 30, 2009. This means that Monalisa was just 16 years and two months old when she got married,” said Dubey. He did not explain on what grounds the documents were found to be suspicious.

Officials with the LSGD, however, said that all the documents, including Aadhaar and a copy of the certificate available on the official portal, were verified before issuing the marriage certificate. Prakash Kumar, a member of the inquiry panel, also told Onmanorama that the report concluded that the marriage was illegal and was registered with forged documents. Dubey claimed that Maheshwar police have registered a case citing provisions under the POCSO Act, SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act and relevant provisions dealing with conspiracy.

When Onmanorama contacted the Maheshwar police, the SHO said that no case was registered under the POCSO Act. Anurag, IG, Indore, told Onmanorama that a case of abduction under Section 137(2) has been registered against Farmaan. “We have not included any other charges. The complaint is being investigated,” he said. Onmanorama saw two police documents: a missing person report filed on March 25 and an FIR on a cognisable offence under Section 173 BNSS. It does not mention charges under the POCSO Act.

A letter from the NCST to the DGPs of Madhya Pradesh and Kerala (accessed by Onmanorama) directs the authorities to file an action-taken report based on the recommendations of the investigation report. DGP Kerala Ravada A Chandrasekhar said that no such letter has come to his notice.

Monalisa got married in Thiruvananthapuram on March 11, 2026. Senior CPM leaders like CPM state secretary M V Govindan, Minister V Sivankutty and A A Rahim MP had attended the event and hailed it as the real ‘Kerala story’. In his complaint, Dubey alleged that the marriage was not just a private affair but a conspiracy to deny the existence of ‘Love Jihad’. He also said that the wedding was marked by the active participation of CPM leaders from Kerala and alleged involvement of organisations like the PFI.

The Kerala unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) had earlier filed a complaint with the state police chief, alleging that Monalisa was underage. The complaint cited evidence suggesting that she was born on January 21, 2009.

However, documents submitted on Kerala’s smart governance platform K-SMART (Kerala Solution for Managing Administrative Reformation and Transformation) indicated a different date of birth. A birth certificate issued by the Nagar Panchayat in Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh, recorded her date of birth as January 1, 2008. These records were reportedly cross-verified on the portal, and officials involved in the process said the couple obtained their marriage certificate within 30 minutes.

The Kerala High Court had on March 23, 2026, granted the couple temporary protection from arrest after they approached the court. This followed a complaint by Monalisa’s father in Madhya Pradesh, accusing Khan of abducting her.

Monalisa first came into the public spotlight during the Maha Kumbh Mela, where videos of her selling garlands and bangles went viral, drawing attention to her distinctive amber-coloured eyes.

Prior to the marriage, Monalisa had approached the police in Thiruvananthapuram along with Khan, alleging that her father, Vijay Singh Bhosle, was pressuring her to marry a man of his choice. At the time, Kerala police stated that she was an adult and therefore free to decide whom she wanted to marry. No case was registered then, as there were no allegations of physical abuse.

Her family had objected to the relationship and maintained that she was underage. However, initial verification by the Kerala police reportedly concluded that she was 18, allowing the couple to proceed with the wedding.