New Delhi: The Delhi high court has sought an Uttar Pradesh Police officer’s presence before it after two persons – the brother and father of a man who got married to a woman against her family’s wishes – were arrested and taken away out of the national capital in an alleged kidnapping case, without informing Delhi Police.
Justice Mukta Gupta, while hearing a petition by the couple, said that it was trite law that persons under the jurisdiction of Delhi Police could not be apprehended by Uttar Pradesh Police without intimation to them and issued notice to the concerned officer.
“It was unfortunate that even without finding the facts and whether the parties were major or minor, arrests were made by the UP Police,” the judge observed.
“One fails to understand when petitioner No.1 is major and has left her parental home of her own free will and married to petitioner No.2 how an offence under Section 366 of IPC (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her marriage, etc) and consequential offence under Section 368 of IPC (wrongfully concealing or keeping in confinement, kidnapped or abducted person) is made out.”
“It is unfortunate that even without finding that petitioner No.1 was major or minor and without finding correct facts from her, arrests in the FIR in question have been made,” the court said, in the order passed on October 26.
“Issue notice to the Station House Officer (SHO) PS Shamli, UP to be personally present on 28th October, 2021 along with case file of case FIR No.398/2021, under Sections 366/368 IPC, registered at PS Shamli, UP. This notice will be served by the SHO PS Jyoti Nagar on SHO PS Shamli, UP in writing, who will also be present in the Court on the next date of hearing,” it said.
It is trite law that the father and brother of the petitioner No. 2 could not be apprehended by UP Police and taken from Delhi without informing Delhi Police, it observed.
The couple told the court that they married of their own free will in July, contrary to the wishes of the woman’s family and were now getting repeated threats from them.
It was added that the father and brother of the man were taken away by UP police and for more than one month, their whereabouts were not known.
Delhi police informed the court that, the man’s family members were arrested by UP police on September 8, in relation to a complaint made by the woman’s mother.
It was added that no intimation of the arrival of the police from Shamli, UP was made at Delhi.
The matter would be heard next on October 28.
(PTI)