Court sent youth to jail for wedding a minor in Tripura

Agartala, June 07: West Tripura Chief Judicial Magistrate sent Surajit Singh to five days judicial custody yesterday for wedding a minor and handed over the girl to her parents with the condition of providing her security as well as mental peace.

Court had also recorded the declaration of the girl and asked police to investigate her statement regarding physical atrocities carried out by her parents.

According to police, Sunil Sutradhar, a resident of Ramnagar area of Agartala had lodged a complaint against Surajit Singh (21) on January 28 last for allegedly kidnapping his under-aged daughter Malabika (14), a student of class nine on her way back home on January 25.

Guwahati High Court, Agartala bench last week had expressed displeasure over the police action against the criminals, who allegedly kidnapped Malabika and the authority had suspended the officer-in-charge of Agartala Women Police station Manidipa Das for inefficiency.

However, on Tuesday last the duo came back to Agartala from Kolkata and police arrested them at the airport.

Malabika and Surajit were produced before the court yesterday, where Malabika denied the allegation levelled against Surajit and appraised the court that her parents tortured her physically and had made a plan to get her married with someone else in January.

As a result, she left her home with Surajit and got married and had been staying as wife and husband for past four months.

Malabika's family had filed a case before the High Court on May 25 under Habeas Corpus, section 226 that implies plea for releasing of illegal confinement of a person and accordingly the court listed Director General of Police, State home department, SP (west), Investigating Officer and abductors as respondents in the case.

UNI