Muslim marriage cannot override POCSO law: Delhi High Court
The court holds ‘personal law may determine whether a marriage has been contracted’, but cannot create an exception to a criminal law where Parliament has provided none, dismissing a petition seeking the quashing of an FIR registered against a man for rape under the BNS and the POCSO Act
Delhi High Court rules that a Muslim marriage cannot exempt prosecution under POCSO for sexual acts with a minor. Justice Sanjeev Narula dismissed a petition in September 2026 seeking to quash an FIR against a man for rape, stating that personal law cannot override criminal law where Parliament has not provided an exception. The case involved a 16-year-old girl who married her 28-year-old husband on December 20, 2024, and subsequently became pregnant.
The court held that the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act sets the age of consent at 18, and sexual activity with a child below this age is punishable, regardless of consent. The judge emphasized that marriage does not immunize conduct prohibited by secular penal statutes, such as the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and POCSO.
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- No personal law immunity from Pocso case for sex with minor wife: Delhi HC hindustantimes.com
