A bench of justices Salil Kumar Rai and Divesh Chandra Samant, which held a special hearing during the holidays, acquitted the couple. File
The Allahabad High Court on Saturday (Oct 18, 2025) slammed the Uttar Pradesh police for “illegally” detaining an interfaith couple, which the court said was a “violation of their fundamental rights”. The court said that detention under “social pressure” but without the authority of law does not make the detention legal and only increases its “illegality”.
The judicial tribunal of Salil Kumar Rai and Divesh Chandra Samant, which held a special hearing during the holidays, last week released the married couple – a Muslim man and a Hindu woman – who went missing after the court hearing. He also ordered the police to ensure the safety of the couple and ensure that no illegal interference is done in their society.
The woman’s father filed an FIR alleging that his “minor” daughter was kidnapped by a man named Shane Ali. Acting on a complaint, the Aligarh police arrested the couple. When they were produced before a lower court, the woman said she was an adult and had married Mr Ali of her own free will.
After filing a habeas corpus petition in the high court, the couple was produced in it on Saturday where they said they were abducted by the woman’s father and his accomplices with the assistance of the police and taken to Aligarh for custody. The woman was sent to the “One Stop Center” and the man was detained at the police station since October 15.
When the court questioned the government counsel about the detention, he argued that there was social tension in the area due to an inter-faith marriage and the police had to detain the couple. But the court noted that the girl was an adult and neither the police nor her father could keep her in custody.
“The detention of the participants by the police was clearly illegal and violated the fundamental rights of the girl and petitioner No. 2 (male) under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The contention that the girl had to be kept in the ‘One Stop Center’ and the petitioner No. 2 was detained at the police station on account of social tension in the custody area cannot be fairly accepted on the ground of different religion of the aforesaid persons,” the Bench said.
He added that in a democratic country, the state government and its law enforcement agencies are expected to use their power to protect the freedom of the citizen and not succumb to social pressures and curtail freedom.
“The police officers who failed in their duty to protect the freedom of petitioner no. 2 as well as the girl are liable for departmental action,” it added, directing the SSP Aligarh to investigate the case and submit a report within a month.
Published – 18 Oct 2025 20:22 IST
