The runaway grooms

Toronto Sun

They won't be planning international terrorism, or preemptive strikes on a form of domestic sabotage.

Canada has long enjoyed a global reputation as a peacemaker country with open arms. Now it's also becoming known as a haven for thousands of runaway grooms, who've left their brides at the altar.

Officials in India say they are facing a social crisis, as an endless bridal train of women complain that immigrants who've come to Canada have returned to places like Punjab, married them, then simply returned to this country without them.

Some officials in India are suggesting specially recruited spies--volunteers--be used to check on the intentions of Canadian grooms looking to wed women overseas.

But an official with the high commission of India in Ottawa offers up another more public way to treat the shifty rats, who sometimes marry for a large dowry or for lavish vacations back to the country of their birth.

"We want to work with the Canadian government to try to find a solution. These (men) abandon the women, and can ... because of privacy laws here ... simply come back to Canada and disappear. Help us find them."

Media reports in India have chronicled an estimated 15,000 abandoned wives in Punjab. Police in the City of Chandigarh report a 40% rise in the number of investigations involving marriage fraud by Indians who've returned home to take vows.

One of the women profiled by India newspapers, Ravinder Kaur, married a man who had emigrated to Canada.

On holidays to India, he managed to father two children with her, promising they would all live in this country one day. Eight years ago, he came back again, saying it was time to make the trip.

At the New Delhi airport, he told her to wait, while he went for a walk with the boys. After sitting for three hours, she opened the envelope she was holding, which was supposed to contain their travel documents.

It was filled with blank paper. He and the kids were long gone.

In 2000, he came back and produced real documents--divorce papers. He's now remarried in Canada.

Ravinder lives in a small, one-room house on her brother's property, still with her sons' toys and picture.

Because of social taboos and class structure, many of the women are themselves considered disgraced, rather than the boors who leave them.

The forsaken brides are called "holiday wives."

There is pressure on Indian officials to help stem the tide of marriages.

In recent media reports from India, officials have suggeste global spy network to try quietly to check the background of bachelors looking for brides back home in India.

According to the Asian Pacific Post,  a January conference will look at recruiting the operatives, to work in countries like Australia and the U.K. The newspaper says the Punjab-based Bhalai Party likens the trend to fighting organized crime.

One Toronto immigration consultant said it's not uncommon to return to India to enjoy a vacation and wedding, only to return slyly to Canada without the new wife knowing he was already married.

India High Commission counsellor, Singh, says it's not an easy matter, but one of culture and dishonour.

"(The families) of the women deal with this in private, then know it, the woman has been abandoned," he says. "Then want to speak about it to anyone."

"We are so helpless to stop it from happening," he adds, insisting Canadian officials to step in and hold the runaway grooms responsible.

One woman the commission dealt with was abandoned in India applied for a visa to come to Canada to search for the lout denied.

So she spent years building up an export business.

Once it was established, she had the credentials finally to find him.

With only days on her visa, she tracked him to his door, and Singh. He could only suggest she try to take the groom to family court, which would have cost her thousands of dollars.

She returned home, and Singh doesn't know what happened to the man who stole her heart, and money, is likely still enjoying the country.

And the immigrant community in Canada seems to give the place to land, once they jump ship.

"We haven't found support (for dealing with the cads)," Singh said.

"They see it as more of a personal problem."

He downplays the effectiveness of marriage spies flushing suitors before they pledge their vows.

Until they're held accountable when they return to this country Singh notes, doom and groom will continue to go hand and hand.