Court No. - 40

Case :- WRIT - C No. - 39392 of 2022

Petitioner :- Km. Nidhi Raghav and another

Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 8 Others

Counsel for Petitioner :- Rakesh Kumar Pandey

Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.

Hon'ble Mahesh Chandra Tripathi,J.

Hon'ble Ajit Singh,J.

Heard Sri Rakesh Kumar Pandey, learned counsel for the

petitioners and learned Standing Counsel for the State

respondents.

Present writ petition is preferred with request to issue direction

to the State respondent nos.2 to 5 not to adopt any coercive

process against the petitioners and for direction to the Private

respondent nos.6 to 9 not to interfere in their peaceful living-in

relationship in any manner.

Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the petitioners

are living-in relationship at District Sambhal but the private

respondent nos.6 to 8, who are their fathers & brothers, are not

happy with the relationship and they have threatened to kill

them. It is submitted that the same sex couples have right to live

together. This Court is duty bound to monitor the rights of the

citizens, which are under threat only on account of the sexual

orientation. So far as the threat perception is concerned, the

petitioners have already represented the matter before the

Superintendent of Police, District Sambhal (respondent no.3) on

09.12.2022 but till date no reprieve is accorded to them. He has

placed reliance on the judgements of Apex Court in Khushboo

vs. Kanaimmal and another 2010 (5) SCC 600 2010 &

Nandakumar vs. State of Kerala 2018 SCC Online SC 492,

wherein it was held that even if the parties are not competent to

enter into wedlock, they have the right to live together even

outside the wedlock. He has also placed reliance on the

judgements of this Court in Writ C No.17394 of 2020 (Sultana

Mirza and another vs. State of U.P. and 5 others) and Writ C

No.27334 of 2021 (Km. Anju Singh @ Anju and another vs.

State of U.P. and 6 others).

Learned Standing Counsel fairly states that in case any such

application is still pending and has not been disposed of, then

same will be considered and decided by the respondent no.3

expeditiously.

In view of the above, without expressing any opinion on the

merits of the issue and considering the facts and circumstances

of the case and with the consent of parties, this writ petition is

disposed of finally with a direction to the Superintendent of

Police, District Sambhal to look into the grievance of the

petitioners and redress the same strictly in accordance with law

but certainly taking into account the threat perception of the

petitioners expeditiously.

Order Date :- 2.2.2023

RKP

Digitally signed by :-

RAKESH KUMAR PATEL

High Court of Judicature at Allahabad