The menace of caste is so deep-rooted in Indian society that families in India are still reluctant to get their children married off to a person from another caste, the Allahabad High Court recently lamented. 

Single-judge Justice Rahul Chaturvedi expressed deep anguish at the fact that the menace was so deep-rooted even after 75 years of independence. 

The Court was hearing a joint plea was filed by victim-woman and her accused-husband who sought quashing of the chargesheet filed against the husband under Sections 363 (kidnapping), 366 (compelling to marriage) of Indian Penal Code, and Section 7/8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act).

The judge observed that in the present case, the father of the victim-girl was still proceeding with case because of the inter-caste marriage despite the fact that his daughter had married the accused voluntarily and was also now a mother of a baby boy.

"This is the clear case of our society's dark face, where the families still feel shy to get their son or daughter to marry inter caste. In the instant case, the victim girl belongs to Other Backward Class (OBC) community whereas the applicant boy belongs to SC community and out of sheer love and affection, they decided to marry at their teens. This wedlock blessed with a baby boy Shivansh having date of birth 16.09.2022. Despite of all these developments, the applicant is facing the futile exercise of holding trial. The court after hearing the parties, records its deepest anguish, whereby this social menace is so deep rooted that even after 75 years of independence, we are fighting the cases with his opponents on this score only...," the Court observed.

The first information report (FIR) in the case was lodged against the husband (belonging to scheduled caste) by the victim's father (belonging to an OBC) in February 2019. It was alleged that his minor daughter, a minor, was enticed away by the accused. 

Later, the victim married the accused and they were blessed with a child in September 2022. Hence, both of them moved the Court to quash the criminal proceedings against the husband.

The counsel for the applicants contended that the only legal impediment was that the girl was only 17 years old at the time of the incident. 

The Court nevertheless said that the father should have withdrawn the case for the bright future of his married daughter.

The Bench relied on Supreme Court judgment in case of Mafat Lal v State of Rajasthan, wherein it was observed observed that an offence under Section 366 IPC would be attracted only when there is a forceful compulsion of marriage by kidnapping or by inducing a woman.

Therefore, taking into consideration the entire facts in the present case, the Court directed the father of woman to appear before it on next date of hearing and also stayed the proceeding with respect to the chargesheet in the case.

The matter will be taken up next on April 28.