Kerala: Love-struck, they ran away to get married; religious groups refuse to let them live in peace

, Nov 11: A love-struck, young couple, who ran away from their native - a small town in northern

, is now being haunted by religious extremist groups.

Gautam, a 24-year-old engineer and Anshida, a 21-year-old dental student, have been running for 11 months now. The problems began in January this year, when the youngsters, decided to spend rest of their lives together, said an Indian Express report.

Anshida was Gautham's junior at school. The parents knew about the affair and while Gautam's parents welcomed Anshida, her parents were against the relationship.

Initially, the couple ran away to Bangalore, where they lived hiding from various groups which threatened the couple. After they got an information that a 20-member supari gang was roaming in Bangalore, searching for them, the couple escaped to Kochi. Around that time, an unidentified gang attacked Gautam's relative's house in Wayanad.

Finally, they got married officially at a registrar's office in Kozhikode, with the support of the CPI(M), which Gautam's family is close to, and police. However, Anshida's parents, who are ardent supporters of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), refused to relent.

A month ago, Gautam and Anshida started living with Gautam's parents, who are school teachers. The threats keep coming, said Gautam, as quoted by Indian Express. The couple don't step out of the house, fearing threat to life.

The Indian Express report says that three days ago, Gautham's house in Perambra in Northern Kerala was attacked in the night by an unidentified gang.

Religious conversion was one solution put forth by Hindu and Islamic groups. However, the couple stand firm on their decision against any conversion.

Meanwhile, Gautham lost his job in Bangalore and Anshida is not sure if she can continue her studies as her college is run by a Muslim group.

The CPI(M) in the region has extended all their support to the couple.

Oneindia News