A cuckolded husband has been living in a tree for the last nine months, refusing to come down until his wife apologises for cheating on him.
But the apology never came and, nine months later, Sanjay, 25, is still there, wondering if wife Tara will ever take him back.
Sanjay, whose surname is not known, married Tara last year in Ramgaon, Varanasi, before moving to Mumbai.
But in March he returned home from work a little early to find his new bride in a compromising position with their next-door neighbour.
Hurt and humiliated, he demanded an apology for the infidelity but she refused so he took her back to their village in a bid to resolve their differences.
But she remained defiant, saying she wanted to return to Mumbai before leaving for her parents house.
So in a last ditch effort to win her back, Sanjay shimmied up a guava tree on the outskirts of the village and has remained there ever since.
He says he will climb down only when his wife apologises for her misdeeds and returns to him.
Despite renewed attempts by his family to persuade her, Tara would not budge.
Initially he refused food, surviving only on the guava fruit picked from the branches of the tree. But when none were left, he was forced to swallow his pride and relied on his mother, who faithfully brought him snacks from home.
‘He climbed on to this tree on March 9 and has remained there ever since. Whenever we try to bring him down, he threatens to commit suicide,’ Sanjay’s mother Kushma Dev told The Asian Age.
‘He eats and sleeps on the tree and even relieves himself from there. We keep going to him and asking him if he needs anything.’
Some villagers, however, claim to have spotted Sanjay climb down from the tree and go for a stroll when he thinks nobody is watching.
But they say he quickly scurries back up to his branch if he thinks somebody is nearby.
His sister Nisha told the paper they have not called police, adding: ‘We apprehend that he may harm himself if we seek outside help. As long as he is safe there, we are happy for him.’