35 couples tie the knot at Nimroz mass wedding

ZARANJ (Pajhwok): Thirty-five couples tied the knot at a mass wedding ceremony arranged by a welfare organization in southwestern Nimroz province on Sunday.

Haji Ibrahim Habibyar, head of the welfare organization, said the purpose of mass marriage was to help couple who lacked the financial ability to arrange their marriages.

“The aim is bring a smile on their faces,” he said, adding his organization paid the expenses on their marriages because it was difficult for the poor couples to afford the wedding, a costly affair in Afghanistan.

Mualvi Bashir Ahmad, the chief Imam of Khatam-ul-Nabein Mosque, said the arrangement of such events was in line with the teachings of Islam. He said mass marriages were a good tradition in Islamic society.

Provincial Council Member Haji Masood Hakemi, while thanking Habibyar for arranging the mass marriage, said the young couples were unable to arrange their marriage after their engagements.

He said some couples came from different districts of Nimroz and others hailed from Zaranj, the provincial capital.

“I want well-off individuals and businessmen to help less fortunate people,” he said.

Naqibullah, 21, a resident of Zranj and one of the grooms, thanked the welfare organization for arranging the event. He said he got engaged six years back, but traditions and old customs made him unable to arrange his marriage.

“In the past five years, I was unable to find a job which could enable me to arrange my marriage,” he said.

nh/ma