NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered protection of a 16-year-old girl from Bihar, who alleged that she was married forcibly to a man twice of her age making her suffer physical and emotional abuse.
A bench of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and Manmohan came to the rescue of the girl and also her friend, who helped her escape the exploitative marriage but himself faced a kidnapping charge.
The court ordered the Director General of Police, Bihar, and the Delhi Police commissioner to ensure that both the girl and boy are safe.
The bench also asked the police to provide them with emergency contact numbers.
The bench has directed the police chiefs to submit status reports in the matter, before fixing the matter for consideration in July.
The court also sought response from the girl’s mother, who registered the kidnapping case against the boy, and the civil contractor, whom the girl claimed was married forcibly. The girl had named both her mother and the man as parties in the petition before the apex court.
The girl filed the plea before the apex court through her friend.
She sought a direction to annul the marriage under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, and protection from any coercive action.
The girl claimed that her husband and in-laws were coercing her to remain in the union, complaining about the money they spent on the wedding.
In the plea, the girl claimed that she had taken her Class 10 board exams when she was married off in December, 2024, under pressure from her family. The plea claimed that the groom, a civil contractor, allegedly insisted on the marriage as repayment for financial support extended to her family.
She claimed she was told she would not be allowed to continue her studies, and also alleged repeated physical and emotional abuse by the husband, especially after she resisted physical intimacy.
In March, the girl left her home and sought help from her friend, who later agreed to accompany her to Varanasi. They have since been on the run. They claimed that their life was under threat. The girl’s mother filed a kidnapping case against the friend in Patna’s Piplawan Naubatpur police station.
