Allahabad High Court
Varsha Gautam & Anr. vs State Of U.P. Thru Prin. ... on 23 July, 2021
Bench: Ramesh Sinha, Narendra Kumar Johari
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH
?Court No. - 9
Case :- MISC. BENCH No. - 10005 of 2021
Petitioner :- Varsha Gautam & Anr.
Respondent :- State Of U.P. Thru Prin. Secretary, Home, Lko. & Ors.
Counsel for Petitioner :- Anuj Kumar Singh,Amit Kumar Tiwari
Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.,Ram Singh
Hon'ble Ramesh Sinha,J.
Hon'ble Narendra Kumar Johari,J.
Heard Sri Anuj Kumar Singh, learned counsel for the petitioners, Sri Ram Singh, learned counsel for the respondent no.4, Sri D.S. Rana, learned A.G.A. for the State and perused the impugned F.I.R. as well as material brought on record.
This petition has been filed by the petitioners seeking issuance of a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the First Information Report dated 4.4.2021 registered as Case Crime/FIR No. 0308/2021 under Sections 363, 366 I.P.C. and section 3(2)(va), 3(2)(v) of SC/ST Act at P.S. Kotwali City, District Pratapgarh and with a further prayer to issue a writ order or direction in the nature of mandamus commanding the opposite parties no. 1 to 3 not to proceed further with aforesaid case crime.
Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the prosecutrix/petitioner no.1 and petitioner no.2 are major aged about 19 years and 21 years as per high school certificate and Aadhar Card respectively. There was love affair between the petitioner no.1 and 2 and they both have performed marriage on 27.3.2021 in Arya Samaj Ved Mandir, Kharkauni Naini, Prayagraj copy of which has been annexed as Annexure-3 to the writ petition. He next argued that the petitioner no.1 had voluntarily left her parental home and entered into matrimonial alliance with petitioner no.2 and that she was major, it cannot be said that any cognizable offence against the petitioner nos.1 and 2 is made out, hence the impugned FIR is liable to be quashed. Learned counsel for the petitioners further submits that as the petitioner nos.1 and 2 are major and they have voluntarily married, then to conceive in view of the judgment of Apex Court rendered in Criminal Appeal No. 1142 of 2013 (Sachin Pawar vs. State of U.P) decided on 02.08.2013), that, offence has been committed under Section 366 I.P.C., cannot be approved of.
Per contra learned AGA as well as learned counsel for the respondent no. 4 opposed the prayer for quashing of the impugned FIR but could not dispute the fact that the victim/petitioner no. 1 is a major girl.
Learned AGA as well as Counsel for the respondent no.4 have not been able to demonstrate that either the prosecutrix Smt. Varsha Gautam was minor on the date of the incident or that she had been kidnapped or abducted by the petitioner no.2.
In view of the aforesaid, it cannot be said that the petitioner no.2 has committed any cognizable offence.
The writ petition accordingly succeeds and is allowed. The impugned FIR and all subsequent proceedings taken against the petitioners in pursuance thereof are hereby quashed.
There shall however be no order as to costs.
The party shall file computer generated copy of order downloaded from the official website of High Court Allahabad, self attested by it alongwith a self attested identity proof of the said person(s) (preferably Aadhar Card) mentioning the mobile number(s) to which the said Aadhar Card is linked, before the concerned Court/Authority/Official.
The concerned Court/Authority/Official shall verify the authenticity of the computerized copy of the order from the official website of High Court Allahabad and shall make a declaration of such verification in writing.
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(Narendra Kumar Johari,J.) (Ramesh Sinha,J.)
Order Date :- 23.7.2021
AKK
