Flagging several cases of minor girls eloping with men who were much older than them, the Madras High Court Thursday advocated counselling for teenagers, their parents and directed the government to furnish data on those arrested under the POCSO Act for such offences.
A division bench of Justices N Kirubakaran and S Baskaran, hearing a habeas corpus plea filed by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who eloped with a 45-year-old married man, observed girls of such age could be lured by "sweet promises and kind words".
Although the man was arrested by the police, he was released on bail with conditions. But as the girl eloped with him again, the parents filed the petition.
A habeas corpus plea is a petition which is filed to ensure a person under arrest is brought before a court which determines whether the detention is legal or not.
Observing that the maturity of teenage girls was not the same as adults, the court said girls of such an age group could be easily lured by persons projecting themselves as caring individuals.
Also Read
Therefore, it was high time that the government came out with a counselling programme, both for teenagers as well as their parents, the court said.
"It is disheartening to know the shocking development in the society... incidents of minors eloping with aged persons or married people is increasing manifold," the bench said.
In such incidents, the families of not only the minor but also of the offender, who is already married with children are affected.
"This kind of trend has become a challenge to the society and it should be curtailed."
The bench directed the Additional Public Prosecutor to submit a report on what conditions the offender was released on bail and if they were complied with or not.
The court impleaded the Director General of Police and the Secretary, Social Welfare Department as respondents in the petition since the court was "facing similar cases everyday".
It directed the authorities to submit a report on cases of elopement of teenagers on their own, girls running away with men who are much older than them and kidnapping during the last 10 years.
Also, the court asked the state to outline the steps taken by it to avoid such incidents and the number of people arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for such offences.
Citing media reports of a woman teacher eloping with a boy who was her student, the court sought to know if the POCSO Act was being slapped against the offenders in such cases.
The bench posted the matter to November 8 for further hearing.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
