Can Minors Marry Under Muslim Law? Kerala High Court Clarifies

Kochi:

Kerala Excessive Court docket has held that marriage of minors beneath Muslim private regulation isn’t excluded from the sweep of the Safety of Youngsters from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. If the bride or the groom is a minor, regardless of the validity or in any other case of the wedding, offences beneath the POCSO Act will apply.

The Single Bench of Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas additional noticed, “The POCSO Act is a particular statute enacted particularly for the safety of kids from sexual offences. Sexual exploitation of each nature towards a toddler is handled as an offence. Marriage isn’t excluded from the sweep of the statute.

“The POCSO Act is a particular enactment. The advances and progress achieved in societal considering have resulted within the enactment. This particular statute was enacted based mostly on rules arising out of jurisprudence referring to baby abuse. The kid abuse jurisprudence developed out of the necessity to shield the weak, the gullible and the harmless baby. The legislative intent to guard the kid from sexual predators hovering over them beneath totally different labels, together with that of marriage, is explicitly evident from the statutory provisions,” he additional noticed.

The courtroom additionally famous that baby marriages have been thought to be a human proper violation.

“A toddler marriage compromises the expansion of the kid to her full potential. It’s the bane of society. The legislative intent mirrored by the POCSO Act is to ban bodily relationships with a toddler, even beneath the quilt of marriage. That is the intent of society, too, for a statute is, as is usually mentioned, the expression or reflection of the need of the folks. Within the accomplishment of the mentioned intent, the POCSO Act has outlined the phrase ‘baby’ in part 2(d) as ‘any particular person beneath the age of 18 years,” the courtroom noticed.

“Private legal guidelines and customary legal guidelines are each legal guidelines. Part 42A intends to override such legal guidelines additionally. Due to this fact it can’t be gainsaid that after the approaching into power of the POCSO Act, penetrative sexual activity with a toddler, even whether it is beneath the guise of marriage, is an offence,” the courtroom added.

Court docket held this whereas dismissing a bail petition of a 31-year-old Muslim man who’s accused of kidnapping and raping a minor lady. He contended that he had validly married the lady in March 2021 beneath the non-public legal guidelines relevant to them.

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