The Rajasthan High Court ordered a FIR against a 22-year-old man for having a physical interaction with a 16-year-old girl that resulted in her becoming pregnant and giving birth on Friday, and the Supreme Court on Friday declined to intervene with that decision.
The Top Court dismissed the petition filed by the State of Rajasthan against the High Court order after taking into consideration the girl’s consistent position that she had “consented” to the relationship, the birth of a child, and also the agreement between the parties that they will enter into marriage after the girl reaches the age of majority.
A bench made up of Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna stated that doing justice to the parties was more crucial.
The Bench was asked to consider the more general question of whether the Court would read down the legislation that specifies that girls must be at least 18 years old to legally marry during the case’s hearing.
The State government’s attorney stated that similar situations that involve girls under the age of 18 who marry their “lovers” and end up in legal trouble that could result in a 10-year prison sentence needed some clarification.
This news is written by Mr. Manpreet Rathor, Research Assistant, All India Legal Forum.
ALL INDIA LEGAL FORUM 