Adults can be in live-in relationship even without attaining marriageable age: Rajasthan HC
Jaipur (PTI): The Rajasthan High Court has ruled that two consenting adults are entitled to be in a live-in relationship even if they have not yet reached the legal age for marriage, underscoring that constitutional rights cannot be curtailed on that ground.
Justice Anoop Dhand delivered the judgement while hearing a plea for protection filed by an 18-year-old woman and a 19-year-old man from Kota, who told the court that they were living together out of free will.
The couple told the court that they had executed a live-in agreement on October 27, 2025.
The petitioners alleged that the woman's family opposed the relationship and had threatened to kill them, and that their complaint to the Kota police went unaddressed.
Opposing the petition, public prosecutor Vivek Choudhary argued that because the man had not attained 21 years -- the minimum legal age for marriage for men -- he should not be permitted to be in a live-in arrangement.
The court dismissed the argument, saying the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution cannot be denied merely because the petitioners are not of marriageable age.
"The state has a constitutional obligation to safeguard the life and liberty of every individual," the judge observed, adding that live-in relationships are not prohibited or criminalised under Indian law.
Justice Dhand directed the superintendents of police of Bhilwara and Jodhpur (rural) to verify the facts stated in the petition, assess the threat perception, and ensure necessary protection to the couple if required.
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Karnataka: 2 arrested for duping Belagavi businessman of over Rs 15 crore in ‘digital arrest’ scam
Belagavi (PTI): Two people were arrested in connection with a 'digital arrest' scam in which an 81-year-old businessman allegedly lost over Rs 15 crore after fraudsters posing as CBI officials accused him of involvement in a financial crime, police said on Saturday.
The accused duo -- Venkatesh Sharath Naik and Degavat Sripada Naik -- both residents of Hyderabad, were apprehended during an operation conducted by the investigators recently, they said.
Their arrests followed a detailed investigation into the case registered on March 18 at the Belagavi City Cyber Crime police station.
According to the police, investigators traced 10 beneficiary accounts spread across Hyderabad, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and West Bengal. A Rs 2 crore transfer to a Hyderabad account provided the breakthrough in the probe, following which on April 6, a Cyber Command Unit team raided locations in Hyderabad, leading to the arrest of the two individuals.
Investigators revealed that the duo had handed over their joint account details, internet banking credentials and cheque books to a handler who remains at large.
According to officials, the senior citizen received multiple calls, including video calls, for nearly six weeks.
The fraudsters claimed that the victim had received a Rs 5 lakh commission for laundering Rs 25 lakh and that complaints had been filed against him for illegal financial activities.
Threatening to arrest him in a money laundering case, they allegedly coerced the victim into sharing his account and financial details with them and transferring the money to a “safe or government account,” they added.
They assured him that the amount would be returned after the investigation. The victim grew suspicious when he received no response from the callers and found all mobile numbers untraceable, according to officials. He then complained to the police.
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