Boy Under 21 Can Marry and Live With Partner of Choice, Says Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court has ruled that a marriage is not invalid just because the groom is under 21 years of age. The Court stated that if both people are legally adults and agree to be together, the marriage is valid.
This decision came after a case where a girl’s father filed an FIR (First Information Report) under Sections 363 and 366 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). He claimed that a boy named Karan Maurya had taken away his daughter, Pratiksha Singh, and feared she had been harmed or sold.
Later, Pratiksha and Karan approached the High Court together, asking for the FIR to be canceled. They explained that they were in love, had married, and were now living together happily.
The girl’s father then argued that the marriage was illegal because Karan was not yet 21, the legal age for a man to marry in India.
However, the Court pointed out that under Section 11 of the Hindu Marriage Act, a marriage is only considered void in certain specific cases. The law does not say that being under 21 makes a marriage invalid. Therefore, the marriage between Pratiksha and Karan is legally valid, even if Karan was under 21 when they married.
The Court also looked into the kidnapping accusations. It said that Sections 363 and 366 IPC do not apply if the girl chose to go with the boy willingly and was not forced, kidnapped, or tricked into marriage.
The High Court stressed that a legal adult can choose to live with anyone they want, and such personal decisions should be respected by society and the legal system.
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