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CHAPTER 30
SOCIAL REFORMS
There were many orthodox social customs prevailing in the community. Child marriages, age-mismatched marriages (an old man marrying a young girl), giving a girl in marriage in exchange for money (kanya vikray), widows banned from marrying again, celebrating completion of the ceremonies for a dead relative by holding lavish feasts (naat tedu) a ban on marriages out side the community all these were followed by people and needed to be reformed or stopped.
The number of young widows of 14-16 years of age was increasing because of age-mismatched marriages. Remarriage of widows was against the rules of our society. It was difficult for many to remain celibate. The number of illegal abortions or girls eloping with men of other communities was increasing.
Lilaben, a young woman from the village of Chela became a widow at a very young age. She wished to remarry and have a full life. She did not want to elope or have a secret life. She met a young man, Lakha Kara of the village of Changa. Both of them fell in love. They got married and lived together as husband and wife. Goriben, a young widow from Dhinchada also had courage to remarry. In the late A.D. 1930s a young man from Vasai, Lakhamshi Virji Shah, had the courage to marry outside the community a maharastrian girl. The community did not approve of this and all the three families were banished from the Oshwal community.
In East Africa the Halari Visa Oshwal community of Thika was quite revolutionary and introduced many reforms. On the November 10, 1933 during the community meeting, a resolution was passed to allow widow re
