HC allows 19 yr girl to go with husband

Madras High Court today allowed a 19-year-old girl of Rajasthan origin from Coimbatore, who apprehended honour killing by her family, to go with her husband in the light of her categorical statement in court that she wanted to live with him.
The Division Bench, comprising Justices S Rajeswaran and P N Prakash then recalled its earlier order, which had recorded that she had accepted to go with her parents.
Her change of mind stated in a Habeas Corpus Petition filed by her yesterday had prompted the court to recall its "unsigned" July 10 order.
When the matter came up, Manju and Sudhagar produced the Marriage Registration Certificate registered in the Sub Registrar's office at North Chennai yesterday, which the bench recorded.

It also recorded statement of her parents' counsel that they were not interested in pursuing the matter as she was going out of her parental house and joining her husband.
The bench said that in light of her categorical statement of wanting to go with her husband, nothing remained to be considered and closed the HCP.

Manju had filed a petition in Court yesterday, seeking protection to her and her husband whom she married against her parent's wishes, barely days after she agreed to desert him.
Appearing before the court in a HCP by Sudhagar, she had told the bench she was willing to go with her parents, following which it closed the petition on July 10.

Manju had said she voluntarily married Sudhagar, with whom she was in love, on April 13, 2014, agreed to go with her parents only because some friends, relatives and Additional Public Prosecutor Maharajan advised her to do so, saying else her father would be arrested on her husband's complaint.
But since then, she was forced to remain in the house as if she was under arrest. She managed to escape and joined her husband on July 15, she had submitted.
Alleging that "honour killing" was "a custom" in her community if a girl married outside, she apprehended danger to their lives and prayed for adequate security to them.

Earlier, Sudhagar in his HCP had submitted he and Manju fell in love and they got married at a temple in Coimbatore.
Her parents lodged a complaint with police against him but it was closed after recording his and Manju's statements that they wanted to live as husband and wife.
But later when they visited her parent's house, he was locked up in a room and Manju was forcibly taken to Rajasthan by her parents, he alleged.
Manju submitted her parents took her signatures on blank papers and lodged a complaint with Rajasthan police against her husband as if he had kidnapped her.