In view of the accusation of honour killing on the father, the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday directed that a pregnant minor girl, who has run away from her house, to keep her at safe haven house in Agra besides Nariniketan till she attains adulthood so that she can live a safe life with her child. The court also asked district judge Mathura to keep her under the supervision of a woman judge.
A single-judge bench of Justice J.J. Munir passed this order while hearing a Habeas Corpus writ petition filed by the minor And Another.
The Habeas Corpus writ petition has been instituted on behalf of the minor by her father, praying that the court did issue a rule nisi, ordering respondents to produce her before this court, and order her to be set at liberty, according to her will and wish.
It is asserted in the Habeas Corpus writ petition that she is a minor, who was born on July 18, 2003. A First Information Report was lodged by the father on March 20, 2020 and registered with Police Station- Barsana, in the District of Mathura, against one Laxman, son of Kamal Yadav, Vishnu, son of Kamal Yadav, and Girdhari Yadav, son of Gopal, the minor daughter, aged 16 years, had gone to fetch her cattle, when the three accused were seen around her by Seema, wife of Prem Chandra.
It was said in the First Information further that she was a minor, and the three accused had taken her away by blandishment. The aforesaid information was registered under Sections 363 and 366 of Indian Penal Code, 1860, Police Station – Barsana, District -Mathura.
It was reported that Seema had told the informant that she had seen the three accused talking to the minor, and further that she had seen the minor accompanying the three men to the bus stand.
In compliance with the rule nisi issued on October 08, 2020, an affidavit of compliance has been filed by the investigating officer, but the minor was not produced. The defence for not carrying out the rule was that the minor is in the family way, and not in a position to be produced before the court.
The court, vide order dated October 14, 2020, accepted the aforesaid explanation, but in order to prevent the rule from being frustrated, modified it to provide that the District judge, Mathura, would depute a woman Judicial Officer posted in his judgeship to go over to her, for the time being residing at Baldev ka Bansh, Police Station – Sikri, District -Bharatpur, Rajasthan.
The court opined, it is very difficult to accept the submission advanced on behalf of both the minor and Meena, that this court may hold her to be a major, by considering evidence contrary to the minor’s recorded date of birth in her high school certificate. To our mind, the minor cannot be referred to a medical examination for the determination of her age, so long as her date of birth founded on her high school certificate is available. This court has perused the high school certificate, where she appeared in the examination of 2018 conducted by the U.P. Board of High School and Intermediate Education.
The circumstances indicated in the note above extracted show that the minor is staying in a home in the foster care of Meena, where, besides Meena, she has her father-in-law Rajendra, husband Radha Krishna and her sister-in-law Poonam. Meena, being Laxman’s sister, who is staying with her in-laws, cannot be trusted with that kind of foster care for the minor, where she is not inaccessible to Laxman.
In the opinion of the Court, the validity of the marriage must be examined in order to do substantial justice to the parties. Given that she was a minor on the date of marriage, which she claims to have solemnized with Laxman, the provisions of Sections 3 and 12 of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 are required to be surveyed.
So far as the question of custody or care for her, while she is a minor different from the foster care of Meena is concerned, one possible option for the minor would be to go back to her father, who has petitioned this Court.
“That option, however, stands foreclosed in unqualified terms, in view of the minor’s unequivocal stand in her statement to the Judicial Magistrate made on October 15, 2020”,
-the Court held.
There, she has clearly indicated that her father would do her and Laxman to death. Apparently, she has a serious threat perception from her father and apprehends an honour killing. In the circumstances, she cannot be placed in the custody of her father, or even within his reach.
The Court further opined, under the circumstances, the minor has to be housed in a State facility or shelter home, ideally at Agra,
which shall be other than a Nari Niketan or home meant for delinquents. She has to be accommodated in a safe home/shelter home with all necessary facilities, where she and her child can stay comfortably, till she attains the age of eighteen years, that is to say, until July 09, 2021.
The district judge, Agra shall depute a woman judicial officer in his judgeship to visit the minor, on a fortnightly basis, and ascertain her welfare – physical and psychological. The woman Judicial Officer would also ascertain the welfare of the child. If there be any shortcoming reported to or noticed by the judicial officer, it will be her duty to report the matter to the learned district judge, who will take immediate steps to remedy it.
The district magistrate, Agra, shall extend all cooperation to the district judge and the lady judicial officer, in the terms required by them.