From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to examine the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights’ plea against the Punjab and Haryana High Court order that a Muslim girl can marry a person of her choice after attaining puberty.
A Bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha issued notice to the Haryana government and appointed senior advocate Rajsekhar Rao as an amicus curiae in the matter to assist the court.
It held that the High Court judgment held as valid a Muslim girl aged 15 years can enter into a legal and valid marriage as per the Muslim personal law, should not be relied on as a precedent in any other case.
“We are inclined to entertain these writ petitions. Issue notice. Pending further orders, impugned judgment of the High Could shall not be relied upon as precedent,” the Bench ruled.
Solicitor general Tushar Mehta submitted that the Muslim girls who are 14, 15 and 16 years old are getting married.
Can you plead custom or personal law as defence against a criminal offence, he asked.
The age of attaining puberty is 15 years as per the personal law in Islam, he said.
The High Court had passed the order while hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by a 26-year-old man against the detention of his 16-year old wife in a children’s home in Panchkula, off Chandigarh. It held that she can on her own willingness and consent marry a person of her choice after attaining puberty and such a marriage would not be void in terms of Section 12 of the Prohibition of Child marriage Act, 2006.
