Liz hurts Indian Hindus sentiments

Thursday, March 15, 2007
Elizabeth Hurley has been called a criminal in India for marrying in a traditional Hindu ceremony. The model-and-actress jetted off to India for a week of traditional Hindu ceremonies, but angry locals insist she has broken the law. Vishnu Khandewal, from Jodhpur, claims under 295a of the Indian Penal Code - which deals with "deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings" - it is against the law to marry in a Hindu ceremony if you are not a Hindu. Khandewal said: "She has hurt the religious sentiments of the community by marrying in Hindu style, which is a criminal offence."

His allegations will reportedly be heard in a Jodhpur court on March 21. Liz's representatives have not commented on the matter. Liz - who is currently honeymooning with new husband Arun Nayar in the Maldives - was left red-faced when Indian locals dubbed her the "oldest bride they had ever seen". Hindu girls usually marry in their late teens or early twenties, almost half the age of 41-year-old Liz.

Elizabeth Hurley's Indian wedding outfit cost an incredible £64,000. The British star, who married Arun Nayar in a lavish Hindu ceremony on Saturday wore a diamond encrusted pink sari worth £4,000, £40,000 earrings and a £20,000 bracelet. Liz's hands were covered in traditional henna tattoos, which cost a mere £5.

Arun's bejewelled coat and turban added a modest £5,000 to the wedding bill. Liz's four-year-old son Damian - from her relationship with movie producer Steve Bing - wore a matching coat and trousers costing £3,000. The Indian ceremony held at the Maharajah of Jodhpur's palace was the couple's third wedding event.

They married in a civil ceremony in Gloucestershire's Sudeley Castle, England, on March 2. Guests were invited to a blessing and a party at the castle the following night. Liz and Arun chartered a jet - costing a further £100,000 - to take friends and family to India for the Hindu part of their union. Celebrity magazine Hello! have reportedly paid a seven-figure sum for the couple's exclusive wedding pictures. Liz, 41, and Arun, 42, are said to have jetted off to the Maldives for their honeymoon on 10 March.

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