"True love" between adolescents cannot be controlled through the rigor of the law or state action, the Delhi High Court has observed while quashing a kidnapping and rape case against a man who had eloped with a girl nine years ago when she was a minor.
The high court said that at times, the dilemma faced by courts could be of trying to justify the state or police action against an adolescent couple who married each other and continue to lead a peaceful life and raise a family and obey the law of the land.
"This court has time and again reached a conclusion that true love between two individuals, one or both of whom may be minor or minors on the verge of majority, cannot be controlled through rigors of law or state action.
"The cases, as the present one, are those where the dilemma of the judge, which may be rare, has to take into account the delicate balance which the constitutional court or courts of law have to strike between the law and its strict application and the repercussion of its judgments and orders by application of such laws on the society as a whole and the individuals who are before it," Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said.
The high court cancelled the FIR lodged against the man in 2015 for the offence of kidnapping and raping the girl, who claimed that she was a major while the police maintained that she was a minor at the time of the incident.
It said in case the FIR is not quashed it will result in affecting the future of the couple's two daughters resulting in failure of effective and real justice.
After eloping, the couple got married as per Muslim rites and ceremonies and with the blessings of the man's parents. An FIR was lodged against the man by the girl's father and when the police caught hold of them, she was found to be five months pregnant.
She maintained before the high court that she loved and married the man and had voluntarily entered into a consensual relationship with him and that she was 18 years of age at the time of the incident.
The high court noted that the couple entered into a marital union even though the law did not permit them to do so and the girl supported the man's case at every stage and not that of the state.
The parties have now been married for about nine years and have been blessed with two daughters and are happily raising their children, it noted.
It said the future of the families of the parties, the two daughters and the wife who is a house-maker and their beautiful harmonious life they have built together in the last nine years is at stake and dependent on the outcome of this petition.
"This court notes that the judicial system is tasked not only with interpreting and upholding the law but also with understanding the dynamics of society. The court's role extends beyond a mere application and interpretation of statutes. It involves an understanding of the implications of its decisions on individuals and the community at large,” Justice Sharma said.
The court said when the scales of justice have to be weighed, they are not always on the basis of mathematical precision or mathematical formulas, but at times, while one side of the scale carries the law, the other side may carry the entire life, happiness and future of toddlers, their parents and family members.
"The scale that reflects and portrays such pure happiness sans any criminality will definitely equal the scale carrying law as the application of law is meant for maintaining rule of law," it said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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