Wife is not a chattel, hubby can't be guardian: SC to Hadiya

New Delhi: A wife is not a chattel and the husband cannot be her guardian, the Supreme Court said on Monday after interacting with a Kerala woman, alleged victim of love jihad.

Her head covered in a red scarf, Hadiya, a 24-year-old Hindu woman from Kerala who converted to Islam, told the Supreme Court that she wants "freedom and release". 

The top court set her free from the custody of her parents and directed that she be allowed to complete her studies at a Salem homeopathy college.

Allowing Hadiya to walk free, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra directed the Salem college to allow her to complete her house surgeon internship.

She studies in Salem`s Sivaraj Homoeopathic Medical Colleges and Research Institute.

In arguments that were spread over nearly two hours, the clincher came as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the court that he was not arguing on Hadiya`s marriage with Shafin Jahan or on her conversion to Islam or anything else but how she could be kept in the custody of her father.

Sibal, who appeared for Shafin Jahan, cited Article 21 of the Constitution saying that no person could be deprived of his life and liberty without due process of law.

The court directed that she be allowed to meet people as per the medical college hostel rules.

The court order came after the bench, also comprising Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud, interacted with her for about 25 minutes during which she expressed her desire to complete her house surgeon internship and pursue her career as a homeopathic doctor.

(With IANS inputs)