KEY POINTS:
British model Elizabeth Hurley has not got off to a good start with her new father-in-law - he has offered to testify against her on charges of mocking Hinduism.
A few days after it was reported that he had disowned the couple because of arguments during the wedding, Vinod Nayar has volunteered to give a written statement against both Hurley and his son, businessman Arun Nayar, said lawyer Hastimal Saraswat.
In the unlikely event that a local court decides to uphold a petition by city resident Vishnu Khandelwal, the couple could be charged with insulting Hinduism by breaking taboos with their lavish wedding in the Indian city of Jodhpur last month.
Mr Khandelwal's complaints include that Hurley should have converted to Hinduism if she wanted a Hindu-style wedding.
He also complained that the couple broke Hindu taboos during the ceremony by drinking alcohol, and that Hurley was also wearing leather shoes.
"Vinod Nayar told me on the phone that the couple had made mockery of Hindu traditions," said Saraswat, who is representing the petitioner.
But legal experts said the case was extremely unlikely to make any headway.
"This will fall flat in the court," said Ashok Arora, former secretary of India's Supreme Court. "You cannot force somebody to follow a ritual."
Vinod Nayar has told British tabloid newspapers that he has disowned the couple, claiming they threatened to have him thrown out of the wedding ceremony.
"My wife Joanne and I feel we were publicly humiliated and treated like social outcasts," Britain's Sunday Mirror quoted him as saying.
The court has heard three witnesses from the petitioner's side, but has yet to decide whether to bring charges against the couple under India's anti-religious hatred laws.
- Reuters
Career In The Spotlight
* Born: June 10, 1965, Basingstoke, England.
* Biggest movies: Bedazzled, Austin Powers: The Spy who Shagged Me; Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery; Double Whammy.
* More famous for: Dating Hugh Grant, 1987-2000, and wearing THAT Versace dress at the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral.
* Children: Has a son, Damian Charles Hurley, born in April 2002. Father is Steve Bing, though he fought paternity until tests confirmed it.
* Wedding: Married businessman Arun Nayar last month in a two-part ceremony. They exchanged vows before celebrity guests including Sir Elton John and Elle Macpherson in Gloucestershire, England, before experiencing a Hindu ceremony in India. (Source: imdb.com)
