HC seeks police report on woman doc's complaint of intimidation for marrying a Christian
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Kochi: The High Court Tuesday sought a status report from police on its probe into a Hindu woman's complaint alleging that she was confined at a so called counselling centre at the behest of her parents, assaulted and intimidated so that she ends her marriage with a Christian man.
A bench comprising Justices V Chitambaresh and Sathish Ninan asked the police about the progress in the investigation after considering an affidavit filed by the 28-year old woman, a doctor, on a habeas corpus petition (HCP) of her husband.
The court ordered issuance of notices to the Sivasakthi Yoga Charitable Trust at Udayamperoor in Tripunithura, where the woman was allegedly kept confined for 22 days, President of the Udayamperoor Panchayat and the police.
The bench then posted the matter to October 10.
Petitioner Rinto Isaac of Thrissur had filed the HCP after the woman went missing on July 27.
In her September 12 dated affidavit, the woman alleged that she was detained by her father and other family members and taken to the counselling centre where she was kept confined for 22 days and asked to "estrange my marital relationship".
Around five persons "kept on pestering" her with the "evil consequences of marrying a Christian".
"When I objected and tried to escape from illegal confinement, they physically assaulted me repeatedly," she said.
She alleged that one person even threatened her saying that if she goes with Rinto, they would kill him.
She claimed she found 65 other inmates like her at the "counselling centre".
The woman, who has filed a police complaint in this regard, stated that after she was taken to her elder sister's house in Muvattupuzha on August 21 by her parents, she managed to escape and joined Rinto.
They got married in a temple in Thrissur and she wanted to live with him, she said. They had also applied for registering their marriage under the Special Marriage Act.
The woman appealed to the court to direct the police to conduct a detailed investigation into the "criminal activities" of the trust.