Both marriages were registered in Singapore. (Representational)
An Indian-origin police officer is under investigation in Singapore over allegations of taking dowries worth thousands of dollars to marry two women and then divorcing them but not returning any cash and valuables, according to a media report.
Singapore Police Force Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) A Mohamed Rafeek Abdul Kader, however, refuted the allegations and claimed that the families of his ex-wives were only looking to tarnish his reputation and get more money from him, The Straits Times newspaper reported on Thursday.
He is accused of having taken dowries worth thousands of dollars to marry the two women and then divorcing them but not returning any cash and valuables, the report said.
A police spokesperson said the officer was assisting with the investigations.
A local news outlet in Tamil Nadu reported that Rafeek married Thaslema, an Indian citizen, in 2014 and received 150 pieces of jewellery and a watch worth Rs 500,000 (SGD 8,900) as dowry.
The report alleged that the officer sent Thaslema back to India a few days after their marriage and filed for divorce without returning the dowry.
Rafeek, however, said they were married in Singapore in 2016, and divorced in 2017.
"After our divorce, Thaslema took back the dowry and went back to India, where she is now happily married with a kid," he claimed.
According to the media outlet, Rafeek married his second wife, Ameer Nisha, also an Indian citizen, in 2020.
He reportedly received 101 pieces of jewellery, a Rolex watch, a platinum ring and Rs 2,81,765 (SGD 5,000) in cash.
The family of the second wife has claimed that he again filed for divorce shortly after tying the knot, and did not return the dowry.
Rafeek has denied this as well. He said he had filed for divorce in 2021 which was finalised only earlier this year.
Both of his marriages were registered in Singapore, he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)