Kendrapara: A 33-year-old homeopath was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly marrying second time without divorcing his first wife.

The accused homeopath, Dipak Nayak, was arrested on charges of bigamy three days after he had unlawfully gone for the second marriage. He was booked following a complaint by his legally married first wife, said inspector of Nikirai police station Pramod Kumar Lenka.

Nayak, posted in a government-run homeopathic hospital in Kalahandi, had legally married a Dailt woman on December 17, 2016. The marriage was registered under the Marriage Registration Act. However, the accused, a native of Nahanga village in Nikirai police station area, married another woman on February 25.

Upon investigation, police found veracity in the allegations levelled by Nayak's first wife. The accused homeopath had violated the Hindu Marriage Act by marrying a second time without divorcing his first wife, said a police officer. Besides, he also faces the charge of torturing his first wife (complainant) for dowry.

Nayak was booked under Indian Penal Code sections 494 (Marrying again during lifetime of husband or wife), 498-A (matrimonial cruelty), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and Section 4 of the Dowry Prevention Act and Prevention of Atrocity Against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act. Nayak was sent to jail after a court dismissed his bail plea.