‘We are not against live-in relationships’: Allahabad HC grants protection to UP couple

The court said this on Friday while granting police protection to petitioners who were of marriageable age and wanted a live-in relationship, and subsequently got married to each other.

The Allahabad high court has observed that it is not against live-in relationship but cannot give protection when one of the live-in partners is married.

The Allahabad high court on June 15 dismissed the protection plea of a live-in couple in another case, noting that the woman was already married to another man (HT FILE PHOTO)

The court said this on Friday while granting police protection to petitioners who were of marriageable age and wanted a live-in relationship, and subsequently got married to each other.

While partly allowing the writ petition of a woman and a man of Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh, a division bench of justices Kaushal Jayendra Thaker and Dinesh Pathak observed, “We are not against the live-in relation. Earlier, we rejected a matter seeking protection by a couple who wanted to live in. The reasons were that the protection to live-in relation was sought for by the petitioners during subsistence of marriage of one of the petitioners.”

The petitioners granted protection on Friday were a young couple, who wanted a live-in relationship. Their marriage was solemnised during the pendency of the writ petition.

The petitioners approached the court on the apprehension that they would be harassed and would not be permitted to live in peace by their family members.

While directing the police to provide protection to petitioners, the court observed, “In this case, both the petitioners are at marriageable age. They wanted to live in but subsequently they have married each other. Hence, in view of the decision of the apex court in the Gian Devi case and as per the government order dated August 31, 2019, the police shall grant them protection after verifying all the documents.”

The high court on June 15 dismissed the protection plea of a live-in couple in another case, noting that the woman was already married to another man.

“We fail to understand how such a petition can be allowed, permitting illegality in society,” the court said.