Feature
Delhi HC declares newly married woman adult, allows live with Muslim Husband
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has given its nod to an adult woman, who entered into wedlock just four days after turning an adult, to live with her husband, rejecting the allegation of her parents that she was a minor and forcibly taken away by him.
It said since she married the man of her own free will and was living happily with him, there was no occasion for it to issue any direction.
It said the woman, who got married against the wishes of her family, being an 18-year-old, was free to make her choice as to whom she wanted to marry. The woman and her husband are both Muslims.
While her parents claimed that she was a minor and was forcibly taken away by the man, the teenager said she entered into wedlock of her free will four days after turning an adult and did not want to return to her parents.
She also urged the court that security be provided to her, her husband and in-laws as she apprehended a threat from her parents.
A bench of justices S Muralidhar and I S Mehta asked the Delhi Police to assess the requirement and provide appropriate security to them as and when needed.
In its order last week, the court said, “The girl is an adult and is free to make her choice as to whom she wants to marry and whom she wants to live with.”
Delhi HC allows newly married woman as adult, permits her to live with Muslim Husband:
It said, “Her marriage to the man has been verified by the police to be true. Since she has done so of her own free will, there is no occasion for the court to issue any direction in that regard in this petition.”
The judges also directed the parents to return her certificates and documents, including school marks sheet, identity card and bank passbook.
The teenager’s mother had filed a habeas corpus petition seeking a direction for production of her daughter before the court, alleging she was forcibly taken away by the man.
The court, however, was informed by the police that the woman, who was born in 2000, had turned major on March 10 and she got married on March 14. She also intimated her family about her ‘nikah’ on March 26. As per her school records, she turned 18 on March 10.
When the newly wed couple appeared in the court, the judges spoke to the teenager in-chamber during which she confirmed that she married the man whom she knew for last four years. She said they had lived in the same locality.
The teenager, who was doing a BA course at a Delhi University college, also told the court that she married him on her own free will and without any pressure or coercion and her husband and in-laws were supportive.
The judges also separately interacted with the woman’s parents, who insisted that she was a minor, and conveyed to them the decision of their daughter.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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