Administrative System of the Marathas c20.s3.13

c20.s3.13

Among the non-Brahmans, however, not only widow remarriage but marriage of a woman to a second husband in case of prolonged and continued absence of the first, depriving her of any means of livelihood, was also permitted. An instance of such a marriage is found among the papers in the Daftar of Shahu Chhatrapati. The facts of the case are as follows: One Godji Gaikwad, Patil of Mauja Bahuli, Tarf Muthekhore, represented to the Huzur that Jani, daughter of Manaji Ghorepada Patil of Sayagaon was given in marriage to Jotyaji Savant of Kasba Dahigaon. Jotyaji however left her and went away. She waited for her husband for ten or twelve years but he did not return. In the meantime her parents died and there was nobody in her husband's family to maintain her. Then she went to the King and represented that as she had none to support her, she should be advised what she should do. The King, thereupon, ordered her to marry a second husband according to the Pat rites. Then she came back to Muthekhore and informed the Deshmukh, Deshpande, and the got of the purport of the Raja's order, and they married her to Godji Gaikwad according to the Pat rites. But the latter was arrested by Pant Sachiv and asked by whose authority he had performed the Pat ceremony. Godji answered that he had the authority of the Raja and as he was afraid that in future he might be similarly troubled by others, he requested the King to give him a written authority. An Abhaya Patra was accordingly granted to him.¹⁸