The girl whose father had claimed she had been abducted by Congress MLA Siddharth Singh turned up before senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manu Maharaaj on Friday to say that she had left home willingly to marry the legislator's driver Pankaj.
A day earlier, the girl's father had lodged an FIR with Masaurhi police saying she went missing after the MLA and his men visited their home. He had also said the girl was a minor, but the police confirmed on Friday that according to her matriculation certificate she was an adult.
The Patna SSP said Siddharth, the MLA from Bikram in Patna district, called him up in the morning to say he had not kidnapped anybody and was at his native village Amhara, near Bihta, 30km southwest of Patna. He said he was not taking any calls, as he was trying to figure out facts before contacting the police. "The MLA said the girl had gone to Varanasi with this driver Pankaj and they had married at a temple there," Maharaaj said.
After the couple returned, Siddharth produced them before the SSP at his residence around 3.30pm. The girl told the police that her family was not treating her well and also putting pressure on her to marry an elderly person.
An investigating officer in the case said the couple would be produced in court on Saturday. The police would decide their future course of action based on their statement. For now the couple is in police custody at Masaurhi police station while the MLA has been allowed to go home.
The girl's father avoided taking calls after the dramatic developments in the case on Friday. Every time he was called, he kept handing over his cellphone to some woman member of the family, who would give a terse one-liner "You guys do nothing but make phone calls" before snapping the line.
Just hours before the case took a dramatic turn, the ruling JDU had demanded action against the Congress MLA. "In every party there is a code of conduct and everybody is equal before the law," JDU state unit chief Bashishtha Narayan Singh had said. "As an FIR has been filed against the MLA, the police are investigating the matter. The Congress should take action against its MLA. Such a step would give lessons to others as well."
Congress president and chief minister Nitish Kumar's cabinet colleague Ashok Choudhary, however, refused to react in haste. "The party will take action against the MLA if only he is found guilty."
Interestingly, the JDU chose to be soft to it other alliance partner, the RJD. Ranjit Yadav, the son of RJD MLA from Atri in Gaya, Kunti Devi, is absconding after a case was lodged against him for attacking a Gaya doctor. Ranjit, too, surrendered in the local court on Friday.
"We are not pinpointing the Congress or any party," Bashishtha said. "Our stand is that parties should maintain a clean slate when it comes to taking action against those facing serious charges."
While the twist in the kidnapping case should bring respite to Siddharth, there are worries for him as the media investigation into the case brought to the fore some very unflattering facts.
His affidavit, submitted to the Election Commission during the 2015 Assembly polls, says he was not married and didn't have children.
He had filled the relevant columns in the affidavit seeking details of his marital status and number of dependents with the words " Lagu Nahi Hai (Not Applicable)".
The Bikram MLA, however, said just the opposite today when asked about his marital status. "Yes, I am married," he quipped. Siddharth's father Utpal Kant Singh, a paediatrician, was more forthcoming. "My son is married for five years and is the father of a son and a daughter."
The father-son duo, however, refused to say anything about the facts mentioned in the election affidavit and left the police station in a huff.
