New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday held as illegal the meetings of ‘khap panchayats’ of village elders opposing inter-caste marriages and issuing fatwa for honour killing. It directed the states to protect couples facing such threats.
A Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud disposed of a PIL filed by Shakti Vahini seeking court intervention to prevent honour killings of couples of inter caste marriages. The Bench said the directions would be in force till Parliament enacts a law to curb the menace. Writing the judgment the CJI said, “Assertion of choice is an insegregable facet of liberty and dignity. Honour killing guillotines individual liberty, freedom of choice and one’s own perception of choice. It has to be borne in mind that when two adults choose each other as life partners, it is a manifestation of their choice that is recognised under Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution.”
