Amritsar: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that a teenage Muslim girl is free to marry of her own choice and should be provided security if she feels that her life is in danger. The High Court has given this decision during the hearing of the petition of a one-year-old Muslim girl. A 17-year-old Muslim girl, who married a Hindu boy against her family's wishes, had filed a petition in the High Court seeking protection, citing threat to her life.
The court passed this order while admitting the petition for hearing. Rejecting the plea that the girl was a minor, the Punjab and Haryana High Court held that a Muslim girl can voluntarily marry her as soon as she attains puberty and her guardian has no right to interfere in it. The High Court Bench observed that the petitioner girl is 17 years of age and is eligible to marry a youth of her choice. The boy she is getting married to is around 33 years old. The court said that the marriage of a Muslim girl is governed by the Muslim Personal Law.
The Court observed that Article 195 of Sir Dinshah Fardunji Mulla's book 'Principles of Mohammedan Law' states that a boy and a girl attain puberty at the age of 15 years, which is considered eligible for marriage. While directing the SSP of Malerkotla to safeguard the security of the couple, Justice Harnaresh Singh Gill observed that the court cannot ignore the fact that the apprehension of the petitioner needs to be allayed. Justice Gill said that the petitioner cannot be taken away from his rights given in the Constitution because he has married against the wishes of his family. However, some people are linking it to the idea of ​​promoting child marriage, in which the minimum age of marriage for girls has been fixed at 18 years. In such a situation, allowing marriage in 15 years by the court, whether the girl is Muslim or Hindu or any other religion, is being indirectly linked to promoting child marriage.
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