News Brief
'Nikah' In Auto-Rickshaw: Punjab And Haryana HC Orders Probe Into Possible Religious Conversion Racket Under Garb Of Fake Marriages
Punjab and Haryana High Court (Pic Via X)
An inter-faith couple seeking protection from the Punjab and Haryana High Court encountered trouble when the bench found that their 'nikah' had taken place in an auto-rickshaw instead of a mosque as they had claimed.
The bench, expressing "dismay and shock," instructed the Senior Superintendent of Police in Punjab's Fatehgarh Sahib to investigate the possibility of a "racket of religious conversion" operating under the guise of such fraudulent marriages.
Taking serious note of the "false declaration", Justice Sandeep Moudgil said, “This act not only amounts to misleading the court by the petitioners but also constitutes a serious offense of committing perjury with the Court... The entire proceeding appears to be vitiated with ulterior motives, aiming to deceive the court under the pretense of having solemnized marriage and facing threats from private respondents," Indian Express reported.
Justice Moudgil's made these observations during the hearing of the couple's plea for protection from the woman's family.
Advocate Harjinder Singh, representing the couple, had earlier submitted that their marriage was solemnized in July in Nayagaon, Punjab, as per Muslim rituals and against the woman's family's wishes.
He added that the couple was now facing threat to their lives.
Singh presented a marriage certificate and photographs to the court.
However, Deputy Advocate General Rajiv Verma, representing Punjab, informed the court that the police could not find the couple at the address provided in the petition.
Justice Moudgil observed with "utter dismay and shock" that the marriage had not taken place in a mosque. He noted that none of the witnesses mentioned in the certificate, such as the Vakil (advocate) or Ahle Jama (congregation members), were present. Instead, the ceremonies were evidently conducted in an auto-rickshaw.
When questioned, the couple's counsel admitted that the ceremonies had indeed taken place in an auto-rickshaw.
Declaring the entire proceeding to be tainted with ulterior motives, the bench stated that the court would pursue an offense of perjury.
“Such an act on the part of the petitioner No.2 (man) amounts to criminal contempt of the court by making false declarations in the petition,” the bench ruled.
The bench instructed the SSP of Fatehgarh Sahib to conduct a thorough investigation in the matter, including whether any racket was operating under the guise of religious conversions through fake marriages.
The matter is scheduled for 23 July, with the SSP directed to ensure the presence of both the petitioners and the respondents in court for the next hearing.
