Irom Sharmila to marry after elections

New Delhi - Sharmila made the announcement while speaking to reporters here on Thursday

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila plans to get married after the upcoming assembly elections in Manipur in March.
Sharmila made the announcement while speaking to reporters here on Thursday.
Sharmila had launched her fast-unto-death on November 4, 2000, demanding the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Pow-ers) Act, 1958.Desmond Coutanho, an NRI originally from Goa, and Sharmila have been in love for a long time. He used to rush to Imphal to be with her whenever she was presented before a local court where she was tried for attempting to commit suicide. On one occasion, Coutanho was beaten up by the angry women activists on the court campus after he was seen holding Sharmila's hand inside the courtroom.
One woman activist said: "In Manipur it is socially not accept-able." Since then Coutanho had stopped coming here.

• India