‘Do not hand over viral Kumbh Mela girl to MP Police’: Kerala HC issues protective orders

Kochi: In a major legal intervention, the Kerala High Court has instructed state authorities and law enforcement to ensure that the young woman who gained social media fame at the Prayagraj Kumbh Mela is not transferred to the Madhya Pradesh police or any third party without explicit judicial approval.

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas issued the ruling upon learning that the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) had instructed the Kerala State Police Chief to surrender the girl to Madhya Pradesh authorities with immediate effect.

High Court questions Commission's authority

Scrutinising the directive, the court highlighted that the commission functions neither as a court, a tribunal nor an adjudicatory body, maintaining prima facie only recommendatory powers. Consequently, it lacks the legal standing to pass mandates that impinge upon an individual’s fundamental right to life.

Furthermore, the bench observed that the Commission's directive itself underscores that the girl's fear for her personal safety was "bonafide and imminent".

"The jurisdiction of the said Commission to issue an order to ensure that the petitioner (girl) is escorted from Kerala to Madhya Pradesh is doubtful. This is all the more so when this court is in seisin of the claim of the petitioner that her right to life and liberty is being attempted to be infringed upon by various persons.

"This court is, hence, of the view that petitioner's apprehension of threat to her life is bonafide and imminent," the High Court noted.

Directives to Kochi Police and State officials

The court ordered the state government to issue firm instructions to law enforcement, including the Kochi City Commissioner of Police, under whose jurisdiction the girl currently stays. Authorities must ensure she is not relocated outside the court's territorial limits against her consent or without explicit judicial sanction while her protection plea remains pending.

"The respondents (state and police) shall ensure that appropriate protection is granted to the petitioner and she shall not be handed over to any person, including the police from Madhya Pradesh, without getting orders from this court," the bench ordered.

The High Court further specified that whenever the young woman, who is currently in hiding, or her designated representative reaches out to the Women Protection Officer tasked with her safety, authorities "shall ensure that adequate and effective police protection be provided to the petitioner for her life and also to ensure she is not removed from the jurisdictional limits of Kochi, Kerala".

The matter has been slated for its next hearing on August 4.

Origins of the legal battle

The NCST's order stemmed from a petition filed by a Uttar Pradesh-based social worker, who alleged that the girl was underage and had entered into an inter-religious marriage.

The girl's husband, Farman, faces kidnapping allegations in a criminal case registered by the Madhya Pradesh police following a complaint lodged by her father, who insists she is a minor.

The young woman from Indore captured widespread online attention after a video of her selling rudraksh garlands at the Prayagraj Kumbh Mela went viral last year, celebrated for her striking appearance and charm.

She subsequently wed Farman in Kerala in the presence of senior CPM leaders, defying her family's objections. However, her parents later asserted that she was under 18, prompting Madhya Pradesh authorities to book Farman under various penal provisions, including charges of kidnapping under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (2006) and the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (1989).

PTI