The Karnataka High Court on Thursday directed the Varthur police to stop the marriage of a minor girl scheduled to be held on June 22 in the presence of a large number of prominent leaders from several political parties.
The issue came to the court’s notice when the girl’s father filed a habeas corpus writ petition complaining that a youth had allegedly kidnapped his 17-year-old daughter on June 7.
According to the father, the police were yet to trace her despite registering a complaint in this regard on June 8.
Following a court notice, the police intensified their investigation and managed to trace the girl, along with the youth .
During the probe, she gave a statement to the police that she has not yet attained 18 years of age and that her marriage was fixed for Sunday as per arrangements made by her parents.
The father had not disclosed about the marriage in the petition. When the petition came up for hearing, the government counsel produced the wedding invitation card, which contained the names of around 60 political leaders, including two former ministers in the previous BJP government, leaders of the Congress party and others.
The girl’s SSLC result card enclosed proved that she was a few months short of 18 years.
Following this, the bench directed the Varthur police to ensure that marriage was stopped as it was illegal.
