Allahabad High Court orders probe into Arya Samaj societies over illegal marriages in UP

The Allahabad High Court recently directed the Home Secretary of the Uttar Pradesh government to initiate an investigation into the operations of Arya Samaj societies that are allegedly conducting illegal marriages across the State.

The direction was passed in light of a spate of marriages involving minor girls that were apparently undertaken without verifying the age of the parties or complying with the provisions of the State's anti-conversion law.

Justice Prashant Kumar observed that,

"However, the Secretary, Home, Govt. of U.P. is directed to get the matter investigated by an officer, not below the rank of Deputy Commissioner of Police, as to how such kind of fake Arya Samaj Societies have flourished throughout the State, who are getting such marriages done, in some cases even of the minor girls and thereafter, issuing certificates, and that too, by violating the provisions of the U.P. Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021."

The Court directed that a compliance report on the matter be submitted in the form of a personal affidavit by the next date of hearing.

The Court was hearing a plea filed by one Sonu against a summoning order issued to him in connection with a first information report (FIR) registered in September last year for rape and other offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act).

He was accused of kidnapping and subsequently sexually assaulting the informant’s minor daughter.

Before the Court, his counsel argued that he had married the girl in February 2020, and that she began residing with him after attaining the age of majority.

The Court observed that the girl was a minor at the time of the alleged marriage, which held no legal validity as it lacked proper religious conversion and was not registered as per the UP Marriage Registration Rules, 2017.

"...In the instant case, marriage has not been registered. The record further shows that at the time of alleged incident, the victim was minor and in no way any marriage solemnized by her, would be a valid marriage," the Court noted.

The Court further noted that it was evident that the applicant and the victim belonged to different religions.

Although the applicant claimed they had solemnised their marriage at an Arya Samaj Mandir in Prayagraj, the Court observed that such a marriage could not have been validly performed without proper religious conversion in accordance with the prevailing legal provisions.

Accordingly, the Court dismissed the plea seeking to quash the summoning order and the entire proceedings under the POCSO Act, noting that the victim was a minor and that the marriage, allegedly conducted at an Arya Samaj Mandir, held no legal validity.

The matter will be heard next on August 29.

Advocate Parmeshwar Yadav appeared for the applicant.

[Read Order]