Rajasthan High Court Directs State To Ensure Married Couple's Safety

The couple, who are major, registered their marriage recently. They approached the court for protection of life and liberty, stating that their relatives are not approving and recognising their marriage.

Justice Birendra Kumar observed:

“The law is well settled that privacy and liberty of individuals cannot be infringed by taking the law in one’s hands. If there is allegation of violation of law, the aggrieved person may take legal recourse and no other step can be at the whim of anyone.”

The court put emphasis on Shafin Jahan v. Asokan K.M. 2018 (16) SCC 368 where the Supreme Court has said that the social values and morals have their space but they are not above the constitutionally guaranteed freedom. The court also relied upon observations of  Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018) 10 SCC 1 regarding right to privacy.

“Considering the constitutional right of the petitioners, let the State respondents ensure protection of the personal life and liberty of the petitioners," the court said.

Case Title: Suman Kumari and Anr. v. The State of Rajasthan & 11 Ors.

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Raj) 7

Coram: Justice Birendra Kumar

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