The Single bench of Justice, Nandita Dubey held that every citizen of our country who has reached the majority has the freedom to live her or his life as she or he desires, as per the Indian Constitution. In the instant case (Guljar Khan v. State of Madhya Pradesh and Others) a writ petition by way of habeas corpus was filed by the petitioner name, Gulzar Khan who had married corpus Arti Sahu, by solemnising marriage in Maharashtra, who willingly converted to Islam. But the parents of the corpus detained her at their home in Banaras and force her to stay away from him. The 19-year-old wife, who appeared before the Court via video conference, indicated that she had willingly married the petitioner and that she was never coerced to convert and that all she did was according to her inclinations.
Priyanka Mishra, a government lawyer, argued that because the petitioner and the woman married in violation of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion (MPFR) Act 2021, their marriage should be declared null and void. She argued that because Section 3 of the MPFR Act states that no person shall convert for marriage, and any conversion made in violation of this provision is illegal, the petitioner’s marriage should be declared null and void. The bench turned down the argument.
