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Rajasthan HC allows woman to go with her husband as test indicates her adulthood
The court said it was a rarest of rare case and an extra ordinary circumstance given the matured and firm statement of the woman to go with her husband and the sincerity and earnestness of the husband, who was in tears before the court
The Rajasthan high court has allowed a woman to go with her husband despite the objection of her parents, who had filed a case against him under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, after an ossification test indicated her age as 17 to 20 years.
The court said it was a “rarest of rare” case and an “extra ordinary circumstance” given the “matured and firm” statement of the woman to go with her husband and the “sincerity and earnestness” of the husband, who was “in tears” before the court.
The court has also ordered the release of the couple’s newborn child, previously under the custody of a Nari Niketan for five months.
The woman’s father from Bikaner filed a habeas corpus petition, stating his minor daughter went missing on September 5, 2022. He submitted her secondary examination mark sheet as proof of her minor status. On June 11, 2023, the police found the missing daughter in Arunachal Pradesh and placed her in Nari Niketan in Bikaner.
The woman gave birth to a baby boy on June 28, 2023, and both were lodged in Nari Niketan. She insisted on being a major, citing record manipulation, as recorded by the court on July 27.
She expressed willingness to go with the man, whom she claimed as her husband and the father of her child. Following court directions, an ossification test was conducted, indicating her age as 17 to 20 years. On August 4, the division bench interacted with the man’s mother and sister, who agreed to accept the woman and her child. The man was then in judicial custody in relation to the FIR lodged at the instance of the woman’s parents.
During the hearing on Tuesday by the division bench of justices Dr. Pushpendra Singh Bhati and Rajendra Prakash Soni, the woman reiterated her desire to be with her husband, who was present in the courtroom after being released on bail.
Additional advocate general M.A. Siddiqui proposed treating it as a rare occurrence and releasing the woman and the newborn with the man for the welfare of the child based on her statements in court.
Observing the extraordinary circumstances, the court decided, “In such extraordinary circumstances, treating it to be a rarest of the rare case on the basis of the present factual matrix and while taking into consideration the ossification test report of the medical board, and also seeing that the corpus is matured and firm in her statement to go with her husband (as claimed by her) along with her new born child and also the sincerity and earnestness of the husband, who is in tears before this court, to take away his lawfully wedded wife-corpus and his newly born child as claimed by him in a better environment than that of girls shelter, Bikaner, this court deems it appropriate to dispose of the present habeas corpus petition, while directing the respondents to release the custody of the corpus with her newly born baby to her husband, who is a major and his family members, who all are present in the court.”
The court directed the authorities to facilitate the safe passage of the woman and her child to the man’s home in Haryana, ensuring coordination with the Haryana Police if needed. Any perceived threats mentioned by the woman and her husband should be addressed by authorities in Rajasthan and Haryana, the court said.
