'Committed Fraud With Court', Punjab & Haryana High Court On Runaway Couple Seeking Protection Against Woman's Parents Who 'Died Long Ago'

The Punjab & Haryana High Court on Friday called out the fraud played on it by a runaway couple seeking protection against the woman's parents, who were found to have passed away long ago.

Perusing the status report submitted by Panchkula Police, Justice Sandeep Moudgil said, "A perusal of the aforesaid extract depicts that the petitioners have committed a fraud with the Court knowingly and deliberately leaving no doubt to the fact that a daughter cannot be assumed to have no knowledge about the death of her parents, which took place on 02.08.2002 i.e., the date, when father of petitioner No.1 had expired and 29.04.2010 i.e., the date, when mother of petitioner No.1 had expired qua which the death certificate issued by Municipal Corporation, Khatoli (Uttar Pradesh)..."

The Petitioners are residents of Uttar Pradesh and they alleged threat from the parents and relatives of the woman. It was submitted that the marriage ceremony was solemnised in a Temple in Haryana's Panchkula.

In the previous proceeding, the Court had wondered how the purohit had solemnized the marriage without ascertaining the proper residence of the petitioners, which do not fall within the territorial jurisdiction of the temple. Justice Moudgil noted that in another petition, the marriage was solemnised from the same temple in Haryana's Panchkula where the couple was from a different state.

 The Court had thus directed the Police to apprise the Court by way of an affidavit regarding the validity of running "such shops" in Panchkula.

"...as is evident from the pictures, which shows that in both the petitions the garlands being used in the marriage solemnization are the same and artificial in nature, which creates serious doubt about the misuse of such provisions of Article 21 and Article 226 of the Constitution of India, wherein couples are running to the Court seeking protection after alleged solemnization of marriage in haste without even adhering to the essentials as enshrined in Sections 5 and 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, as even the Pandit performing the rites and rituals is not concerned about the religious obligation casted upon him and is only concerned about earning his livelihood without even adhering to the morals and social values, and is damaging the social fabric of our society at large,"said the Court.

However, in the status report submitted on Friday, by Assistant Commissioner of Police, Panchkula it was submitted that the parents of the woman against whom protection was sought has already passed away. According to the death certificate the mother died in 2002 and father expired in 2010.

 While taking the report "on record", the Court listed the matter for February 14.

Case Title: X v. State of Haryana & Others.