Police Bound to Protect Couples Who Choose Their Partners: Rajasthan High Court Sets Up Nodal Officer Mechanism

A major couple who married with mutual consent on 01.03.2024 sought police protection, apprehending threats from the first petitioner's family, who saw the marriage as a threat to their honour; they said their representation to the police was not considered (paras 2-3). Noting that 15-20 such petitions reached it daily, often without any prior approach to the police, the Court invited the Bar’s views and called for a draft Standard Operating Procedure from the police (paras 4-5, 11). Counsel described police inaction, harassment and collusion with families (para 7). The State said representations were decided and pointed to the Police Accountability Committees under the Rajasthan Police Act, 2007 (para 10).

Relying on Lata Singh and Shakti Vahini, the Court held that adults have a constitutionally protected autonomy to choose a partner or spouse, and that Articles 14 and 21 support their claim to enhanced police protection against extra-legal threats (paras 16-21). The State must make and implement laws and policies protecting that choice (para 22). The police bear a constitutional responsibility to protect such couples, reflected in Sections 168-169 BNSS and Section 29 of the Rajasthan Police Act, and accessible mechanisms must hold officers accountable when they fail (paras 23-24). The Court recorded Rajasthan's failure to comply with the Prakash Singh directions on Police Complaints Authorities (paras 25-27). The Police Accountability Committees under Sections 62-69 of the 2007 Act dilute those safeguards in composition, selection and the non-binding nature of their recommendations, leaving an in-house mechanism controlled by the State Government (paras 28-29). Because the police are better placed than a writ court to assess age, consent and threat, the Court laid down a procedure instead of deciding such facts itself (paras 4, 29).