Delhi High Court rules live-in relationships are akin to marriage

The Delhi High Court has ruled that a live-in relationship between consenting adults is akin to marriage, asserting that parents, relatives, or friends have no legal authority to interfere with such choices or threaten the couple’s liberty. Justice Saurabh Banerjee issued this observation while granting police protection to a couple in their 30s who faced threats of violence from the woman’s family.

The court emphasized that fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution cannot be curtailed by societal morals or prejudices. It noted that while the petitioners are not legally married, their consensual decision to live together carries legal sanctity, and they possess the unfettered right to reside with a partner of their choice.

In a separate observation regarding sexual consent, Justice Girish Kathpalia noted that while false promises of marriage cannot be used to induce sexual relations, courts must distinguish between purely consensual relations and those ‘tainted’ by such false assurances to determine criminality.