Court cannot pontificate on matters relating to morality, a Division Bench of the High Court said.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently held that there is no legal restriction preventing an adult woman from residing with a man who is already married.
A Division Bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Pradeep Mittal further clarified that if the woman chooses to marry such a man, the right to initiate proceedings for bigamy would rest solely with his first wife.
The matter originated from a Habeas Corpus petition seeking custody of a woman over 18 years old, alleging that she had left her parental home to live with a married man.
The State counsel apprised the Court that the man in question had already separated from his first wife and intended to pursue divorce proceedings.
In its ruling dated August 18, the Court emphasized that the woman, as an adult, possesses the autonomy to choose—whether wisely or unwisely—the person with whom she wishes to reside.
“As regards the person with whom she wants to live being married, there is no law that prevents her from living along with the said person,” the Court added.
The Court further remarked that it was not within its domain to pronounce on matters of morality and, accordingly, directed the police to set the woman at liberty.
“This Court cannot pontificate on matters relating to morality and once having observed that the Corpus ‘X’ has a right to stay with whom she wants to stay with and as she has declined to stay with her parents, the police (Shri Manish Tripathi, D.S.P., Gotegaon, District Narsinghpur) is requested to release the Corpus ‘X’ after taking an undertaking from her that she is going to live with the person of her choice and also take an endorsement from the person with whom she is living that he has accepted the company of the Corpus,” it ordered.
