Mumbai: Pre-empting a Sairat-like ending, a 19-year-old girl has approached the Bombay High Court seeking protection from her family and relatives, who are vehemently opposing her relationship with a boy who belongs to a lower caste.
The girl has urged the court to protect her fundamental right to life and liberty, as guaranteed by the Constitution. The girl, Priyanka Shete, a second year law student from Pune, moved the court through her counsel Nitin Satpute. She has claimed, her parents are against her relationship with Viraj Awghade, since he belongs to the Scheduled Caste, while she belongs to the Maratha community.
“My parents are against an inter-caste marriage, hence they do not like my relationship with a lower caste boy. They have now threatened to kill us both, if I continue meeting Viraj, ’’ Shete has said in her plea. According to Satpute, due to the constant harassment, his client attempted to end her life by consuming medicines; however, timely intervention helped.
“Her uncle Dattatray Shete, who is an advocate by profession, after learning of her love affair, brought his hand-made pistol (Katta) and threatened to kill my client. He also brutally assaulted her,” Satpute said. All this had a direct impact on her education as the family stopped Shete from going to college. Unhappy with the treatment being meted out to her, she left her house and went over to live with Viraj.
She has expressed a desire to marry him but only after they attain the legal age of marriage — both are 19 years old. “I am an educated girl and competent enough to take my decisions. I have decided to stay with Viraj and will marry him only after we both turn 21,” Shete has said in her plea. A division bench led by Justice Ranjit More is likely to take up the matter for hearing in due course.
