- (1.) The petition is against the order issued by the District Magistrate, Fatehgarh Sahib, giving information that his application for arms licence has been declined on the recommendation of the Senior Superintendent of Police, Fategharh Sahib, on the ground that there was no actual perception of danger to him and, therefore, his request was declined.
(2.) The State supports its decision and would rely on the instructions issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on 31.3.2010 that sets out 11 parameters that should come into reckoning before a licence is issued. Para (ii) deals with the grant of arms licence for non-prohibited bore (NPB) weapons. It sets out procedure that the arms licences would be considered by the State government and there are no norms of grant of NPB weapons by many States and, therefore, there was need for settling the terms. The grounds are given as under:- (a) Applications for grant of NPB arms licences may be considered from persons who may face or perceive grave and imminent threat to their lives, for which the licensing authority will obtain an assessment of the threat faced by the persons from the police authorities. (b) No licence may be granted without police verification, which will include report on i) antecedents of the applicant, ii) assessment of the threat, (iii) capability of the applicant to handle arms, and (iv) any other information which the police authority might consider relevant for the grant or refusal of licence. Steps are being taken to delete the proviso to Sec. 13 (2A) of the Arms Act, 1959 (c) The police authorities may be advised to send the police report within 45 days positively falling which the police officials concerned may be liable for action. (d) The licensing authority may call for any information/documents such as voter ID card, ration card or any other document which it may consider necessary to verify the bonafides of the applicant and to ensure that the applicant resides within its jurisdiction." While setting out the procedure to the police authorities to make a report it is required that the identity of the person who is seeking for issue of licence, the applicant's antecedents, assessment of threat and capability of the applicant to handle arms are all duly considered. As a matter of policy, there can be no objection taken about the strict applicability of the norms. The petitioner's case is founded on a plea that he is a person belonging to Schedule Caste community and he has married inter-caste with a lady perceived to be higher in the hierarchal order of caste structure. The marriage took place on 19.1.2012 and ever since the solemnization of the marriage, the petitioner has given to the police authorities several complaints seeking for protection against the community members of his wife, who have serious misgivings about their union and that his own life was in danger. All the entreaties on various dates to the authorities commencing from the SHO to Deputy Commissioner, including the SSP seeking for protection have been filed in court. The petitioner has given the details of how he has approached the court to secure protection of his life and liberty and the expenses that he has incurred for availing to himself legal assistance to secure orders of the court.
(3.) The situation in some of the States in India is truly poignant and the newspapers are replete with reports of macabre killings of young couple for invoking ire of the community of the so called high caste by inter-caste love marriages. While untouchability was declared to be abolished and made the only constitutional offence declared in the Constitution of India, we have still not been able to abolish many of its practices. If the statistics relating to honour killings are not sufficient to make possible inference that caste inequity and cross cultural, inter religious marriages are still serious issues that disrupt harmony in the society, what greater self deception could there be The truth is that dangers just lurk from every corner for youths who defy obnoxious norms that are placed for matrimonial bonds. A casteless society would be just another dream, if cross-cultural, cross- religious and inter-casts marriages are disrupted by deliberate killings. We cannot simply tolerate them. We need to engage in ideological fight. We need every muscle be flexed; every sinew strengthened and every citizen made ready to fight against those caste inequities.;