Court No. - 1
Case :- HABEAS CORPUS WRIT PETITION No. - 55257 of 2017
Petitioner :- Smt. Muskan (Detenue) And Anr.
Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 4 Ors.
Counsel for Petitioner :- Rajesh K.S. Chaudhary
Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.
Hon'ble Ramesh Sinha,J. Hon'ble Krishna Pratap Singh,J.
Heard Sri Rajesh K.S. Chaudhary, learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri Vikas Sahai, learned A.G.A. for the State.
As per the Office report dated 24.03.2018, notice issued to respondent no. 5 has been received back after service as per report of C.J.M. concerned. None has appeared on behalf of the respondent no. 5 to contest the matter though the matter has been called out in the revised list.
This petition has been filed by the petitioners with the prayer to direct the respondent no. 4 (The Superintendent Naari Niketan Mathura) to produce the corpus-petitioner no. 1 before this Court and she may be set at liberty forthwith from the illegal custody. Further prayer is made that this Court may be pleased to quash the impugned order dated 17.01.2017 passed by Additional Sessions Judge (Fast Track Court), Court No. 2, Bulandshahr.
On 07.03.2018 this Court has passed the following order:-
"As per the Office report dated 6.3.2018 notice issued to respondent no. 5 has not been received back after service.
Await for the notice.
Heard Sri R.K.S. Chaudhary, learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri Vikas Sahai, learned A.G.A., who has accepted notice on behalf of the State.
Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that as per high school certificate the corpus-petitioner no. 1 is at the verge of attaining majority as she is more than 17 years of age and in her statement recorded under section 164 Cr.P.C. she has expressed her desire to go with petitioner no. 2 and denied the prosecution case. In the F.I.R. which was lodged by respondent no. 5, petitioner no. 2 has already obtained bail from the competent court. The learned Magistrate taking into account that petitioner no. 1 is minor has sent her to Nari Niketan. He submits that even though the victim was taken to be minor by the Magistrate, she cannot be allowed to be kept in Nari Niketan against her wishes. In support of his arguments, he has further placed reliance on the judgment of the Apex Court as well as this Court in the case of Smt. Parvati Devi vs. State of U.P. reported in 1992 All. Crl. Cases 323 and Smt. Renu Maurya and another vs. State of U.P. and another reported in 2014 (86) ACC 128.
Respondent no. 4 is directed to produce the corpus petitioner no.1 Smt. Muskan before this Court on 27th March, 2018.
List on 27th March, 2018.
Copy of the order may be issued to learned A.G.A. free of cost for its compliance.
In the meanwhile, learned A.G.A. shall also inform respondent no. 5 about the pendency of the present petition before this Court. "
In compliance of this Court's order dated 07.03.2018, the corpus-petitioner no. 1 Smt. Muskan has been produced by respondent no. 4 before this Court today in police custody and on a query being made, she has stated that she wants to go with her husband petitioner no. 2 who is also present and identified by his counsel Sri Rajesh K.S. Chaudhary.
Considering the submissions advanced by learned counsel for the parties and taking into account the fact that as per the statement of the corpus-petitioner no. 1, she voluntarily gone with Ajay Sharma @ Sonu and in view of the law laid by the Apex Court as well as this Court in the case of Smt. Parvati Devi (Supra), Smt. Renu Maurya (Supra) and S. Varadarajan Vs. State of Madras (Supra), the corpus-petitioner is set at liberty to go in accordance with her own wishes. The impugned order dated 17.01.2017 passed by court below sending the corpus-petitioner in Nari Niketan is hereby set aside.
Let the corpus -petitioner Smt. Muskan who is produced before this Court today shall be taken back to the Nari Niketan from where she shall be set at liberty by respondent no. 4 to go according to her wishes.
Accordingly, the present petition is allowed.
(Krishna Pratap Singh,J.) (Ramesh Sinha,J.)
Order Date :- 27.3.2018/A.K.Verma