HC asks Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh to make available ‘safe houses’ for runaway couples
The Hindu
To protect the life and liberty of couples who have married against the wishes of their family, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has suggested that safe houses be made available in each district of Punjab, Haryana as well as the Union Territory of Chandigarh.
In a writ petition that sought issuance of directions to the Punjab government to protect the life and liberty of the petitioners who had recently solemnised marriage against the wishes of their parents, Justice Avneesh Jhingan, in an interim order, pointed out that a “number of such petitions are being filed by the couples who performed marriage against the wishes of their parents and relatives. This court is also being approached by couples stating to be in a live-in relationship... Over a period, the experience is that a number of such petitions are filed as a matter of routine. ..The net result is that petitions involving real, serious and eminent threats get mixed up with the numerous other petitions. There is another aspect of the matter. The couples who are apprehending threat have to travel all the way to this court for completing the formalities for filing the writ petition. This further exposes them to threat.”
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