Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday said that a married man having a live-in relationship with a consenting adult woman does not violate any law.
“Morality and law must be separated. If there is no crime under the prescribed law, social views and morality will not guide the work of the court to protect the rights of citizens,” a bench comprising Justice JJ Muneer and Justice Tarun Saxena observed.
The court granted protection from arrest to both petitioners in the case. The woman and the man were living together, but the woman’s family filed a complaint on the grounds that the man was already married. The petitioners claimed that the woman’s family was interfering in their lives.
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The other party’s lawyer said that the man was already a married man, and claimed that being with another woman was a crime. “There is no crime of such a nature that a married man, who is in a live-in relationship with an adult, with the consent of the other person, can be tried for any crime, whatsoever,” the court said in its March 25 order.
The court also prohibited a member of the woman’s family from causing any harm to the petitioners and ordered that they not enter the marital home or contact them directly or through any electronic means of communication or through the agency of others.
“The Superintendent of Police of Shahjahanpur will be personally responsible for ensuring the safety and security of the petitioners. It is the duty of the police to protect two adults living together,” the bench said.
