Mumbai: A 24-year-old woman, allegedly held hostage by her own family in Bihar for refusing a forced marriage, told the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that she wishes to live and work in Pune of her own free will, without any interference from her parents.
The woman was produced before a vacation bench of Justices Neela Gokhale and Firdosh Pooniwalla following a habeas corpus (produce person in court) petition filed by her friend. The court had earlier directed the Ambegaon police in Pune to trace and bring her back from Samastipur, Bihar, where her family resides.
The petition stated that the woman was working with a real estate firm in Pune when she was called home to Bihar for a family function in April. However, on May 1, she sent an alarming message to her friends via WhatsApp, claiming she was being assaulted and threatened by her parents to marry against her will.
Her phone was allegedly confiscated, and she later managed to contact her friend through different numbers, saying that the local police at Ujiarpur had failed to help her. She urged her friends to act, fearing for her safety.
The High Court, on May 29, directed the Ambegaon police to retrieve her. The police team faced resistance from the woman’s family but successfully brought her to Maharashtra.
“We have inquired with her… She categorically stated that she is residing in Pune at her free will and she is not under any threat or pressure from anybody,” the bench noted in its order. “She also stated that at present, she is not in contact with her parents and hence there is no question of her parents threatening her presently.”
Following her statement, the petition was withdrawn. The court remarked, “Needless to state that the Petitioner or detenue herself is at liberty to approach this Court in the event there is any further cause of action.”
