Virendra Singh, J. - (1.) 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners. Learned standing counsel appears for respondent nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4. The respondent nos. 5 and 6 are the father and brother of petitioner no.1.
(2.) BY this writ petition the petitioners, claiming to be of major and of marriageable age and entered into marriage with their consent, have prayed for directions to the respondents as well as their relatives arrayed as private respondent and the police not to take any action against the petitioners. They have further prayed that the police should not arrest them during the pendency of the writ petition. In paragraph-8 of the writ petition it is stated that the petitioner no. 1 has filed a complaint on 20.2.2009 against her father, brother and brother-in-law before the Judicial Magistrate, Pilibhit in Complaint No. 201 of 2009 under Sections 323, 504, 506 IPC. In paragraph-16 it is stated that respondent nos. 5 and 6 are harassing the petitioners with the help of respondent no. 4 and are trying to lodge the FIR and put them in jail. The FIR has not been lodged against the petitioner no. 2 till 10.4.2009. The petitioners have relied upon Lata Singh vs. State of UP AIR 2006 SC 2522 in support of their submission, that there is no law prohibiting inter-caste marriage or marriage between the boy and the girl of a different religions. At best the family may socially avoid them, but that they cannot be subjected to harassment, torture and intervention in their life by police.
(3.) IN Lata Singh's case a first information report was lodged against the boy and the girl and that the brothers of Lata Singh had beaten up all the family members, cut away the crops and locked the boy's shop. Lata Singh had appeared before the State Women Commission in Rajasthan and had also recorded her statement before the Magistrate. The Supreme Court had, in such circumstances, quashed the prosecution and had directed that the parents of the boy and the girl and the police shall not interfere in their married life. If the petitioners are of marriageable age and have married with their consent, there is no reason as to why the police would register a criminal case and to prosecute them.;