Love Jihad case | SC: Can court annul marriage by consent?

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked if a court can question the validity of a marriage between two consenting adults and if the Kerala High Court order annulling the marriage of Hadiya, an alleged victim of ‘love jihad’, was justified.

“Can a court say a marriage is not genuine or whether the relationship is not genuine? Can a court say [Hadiya] did not marry the right person? She came to us and told us that she married of her own accord,” the bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra said.

On Wednesday, Hadiya, a 24-year-old homoeopathy student submitted an affidavit expressing her willingness to live with her husband Shafin Jahan. “I embraced Islam by choice after studying it and I married Shafin Jahan from the same faith as per my own free will,” Hadiya, who had converted to Islam in 2016, had said.  

In May 2017, at the instance of Asokan KM, the Kerala High Court had annulled his daughter Hadiya’s marriage with Jahan.

Asokan had alleged that his daughter Akhila, who changed her name to Hadiya after converting, was indoctrinated by a “well-oiled network” which trafficked girls to countries like Syria where they’d work as “sex slaves.”

Asokan’s lawyer, advocate Shyam Divan, said the Kerala High Court’s decision was correct.

ADVOCATING FOR IT

• Advocate Shyam Divan, who was representing Hadiya’s father Asokan KM, suggested the HC was correct and could invoke its jurisdiction to annul a marriage in special circumstances.