The Supreme Court ordered the Delhi Police on Tuesday to provide protection to a 20-year-old woman who allegedly ran away from home and is facing threats to her life from family members.
The order was passed by a vacation bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra, who declined to interfere with a Madhya Pradesh High Court order canceling anticipatory bail granted to a man accused of kidnapping her.
During the vacation bench hearing, the woman appeared via videoconferencing and asked the court to allow her to appear in person.
She appeared before the bench after being granted permission and expressed concern that her family members are threatening her life and that her brother is following her.
The woman expressed her fear of being forcefully taken back to her home, a place she strongly wishes to avoid. She stated that she currently resides in Varanasi and desires to return there. Despite her preference, she sought protection.
Upon hearing the woman’s testimony, the bench acknowledged that the high court had revoked the man’s anticipatory bail due to his lack of cooperation during the investigation and failure to respond to the investigating officer’s summons, as observed by the court.
“We are not inclined to interfere with the impugned orders passed by the high court.In that view of the matter, it is directed that the petitioner shall surrender to the concerned police station within two days. However, it shall be open for the petitioner to make appropriate application seeking bail as may be permissible under the law and the same shall be decided by the concerned court as expeditiously as possible without being influenced by the observations made in the present order,” the bench stated.
In light of the woman’s expressed fear for her safety, the Supreme Court instructed the Tilak Marg SHO in New Delhi to ensure her protection. Additionally, the court directed the SHO to make necessary arrangements for her transportation to Varanasi on Tuesday itself.
It should be noted that the woman’s parents had filed a case of kidnapping against the man.
