Amritsar girl drags parents to high court for trying to get her forcibly married

In response to a petition filed by a teenage girl from Amritsar, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday (Feb 22) asked the local police to ensure her security.

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Charanjit Kaur, a 17-year-old from Kohala village in Amritsar district, has told the court that she is a student of Class XII in Satya Bharti Adarsh Senior Secondary School at Chogawan in the same district and her final examination is due in March. But to her utter dismay, Charanjit's parents have fixed her marriage with a local boy and they did not even care for her approval. She has also told the court that her parents are not ready to see her completing her studies and pursue a career. In fact, she hasn't even met the boy who her parents have chosen as her life partner.

The court, subsequently, issued notices to the girl's parents — father Hamesh Singh and mother Sukhwinder Kaur, the Amritsar Police and the Punjab government — to file their replies by February 28 in response to the allegations brought by the girl.

Charanjit has also added that when she refused to marry the boy, her parents beat her up and sent her to her aunt's house. They told her that she would not be allowed to leave until the marriage was over.

According to Hindustan Times, advocate Sandeep Wadhwan told the high court bench on Wednesday: "When she protested, she was allegedly given a beating by her parents, who even threatened to kill her".

Kaur managed to escape and asked help from the police but in vain. She had also filed a petition before the Amritsar district and sessions judge but was denied any relief on the ground that the court does not have powers to issue directions in such cases. The court said it could entertain only applications by run-away couples for protection of life and liberty. 

Kaur also asked the high court to direct her parents not to interfere in her personal life and study.

The case will be heard on February 28.