Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court (HC) has said that there should not be any interference if an adult marries according to her choice and decides to convert into another religion.

The statement of Calcutta HC came during the hearing of a petition filed by a father who claimed that his daughter has been unduly influenced to marry a man of a different religion.

A 19-year old woman married a person of her choice, however, her father filed a petition to the HC saying that his daughter’s statement before a magistrate might not have been recorded in a climate where she felt comfortable.

After the FIR, the police had produced the woman in a judicial magistrate, before whom she made a statement that she had married of her own will.

“If an adult marries as per her choice and decides to convert and not return to her paternal house, there can be no interference in the matter,” a division bench comprising justices Sanjib Banerjee and Arijit Banerjee observed on Monday, quoted The Indian Express.

Upon the dad’s complaint, the HC had coordinated that the lady would meet the senior-most additional judge in Tehatta and that adequate consideration was to be taken so she was not under any pressure or excessive impact.

The bench found that despite a reasonable and clean report being outfitted by the additional district judge, the father harbors some doubt.

Susmita Saha Dutta, the attorney representing the father, asserted before the division bench that the spouse was available inside the court premises at Tehatta in Nadia district when the lady showed up before the judge.

The bench guided that to mollify the father’s doubt, the lady will meet additional public prosecutor Saibal Bapuli in his chamber in Kolkata on December 23.

The bench additionally coordinated that at the time the lady meets Bapuli, who is representing the state in the issue, there should be nobody else in the room, including her husband.

The bench asked Bapuli to file a short report when the issue shows up for hearing again on December 24.