Conduct Training Programmes For Police Officers To Deal With Socially Sensitive Cases Arising Out Of Interfaith/Caste Marriages: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court directed the Police Authorities to to lay down some guidelines and training programmes how to handle such socially sensitive cases like those arising out of inter marriages.

The bench comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hrishikesh Roy criticised a police officer who refused to close 'missing persons' FIR lodged by the father of a girl even after he came to know that she had married a person and is staying with him. The couple approached the Supreme Court alleging that the Investigating Officer is forcing her to to come back to Karnataka and threatening to lodge cases against the husband.

We strongly deprecate the conduct of the IO in adopting these tactics and the officer must be sent for counseling as to how to manage such cases, the bench observed.

The court observed that IO should have conducted himself more responsibly in closing the complaint and if he really wanted to record the statement, he should have informed that he would visit her and recorded the statement instead of putting her under threat of action against her husband to come to the police station. 

The bench further observed that the consent of the family or the community or the clan is not necessary once two adult individuals agree to enter into a wedlock. Such a right or choice to marry is not expected to succumb to the concept of "class honour" or "group thinking", the court said. 

"The way forward to the police authorities is to not only counsel the current IOs but device a training programme to deal with such cases for the benefit of the police personnel. We expect the police authorities to take action in this behalf in the next eight weeks to lay down some guidelines and training programmes how to handle such socially sensitive cases.", the bench added.

While quashing the FIR, the bench advised the father of the girl to accept the marriage and re-establish social interaction with his daughter and son in law. Under the garb of caste and community to alienate the child and the son-in-law will hardly be a desirable social exercise, it added.

The bench has concluded the Judgment with the following words of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar from "Annihilation of Caste;

"I am convinced that the real remedy is inter-marriage. Fusion of blood can alone create the feeling of being kith and kin, and unless this feeling of kinship, of being kindred, becomes paramount, the separatist feeling—the feeling of being aliens—created by Caste will not vanish. Where society is already well-knit by other ties, marriage is an ordinary incident of life. But where society is cut asunder, marriage as a binding force becomes a matter of urgent necessity. The real remedy for breaking caste is inter-marriage. Nothing else will serve as the solvent of caste." 

CASE: LAXMIBAI CHANDARAGI B  vs. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA [WRIT PETITION [CRIMINAL] NO.359/2020]

CORAM: Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hrishikesh Roy

CITATION: LL 2021 SC 79

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