Devu G Nair vs. The State of Kerala & Ors.
Background
The appellant and another woman ('X'), who said they were in an intimate relationship, were separated after X's parents allegedly kept her in their custody against her will. The appellant filed a habeas corpus petition in the Kerala High Court seeking X's release, and the High Court passed interim orders directing a District Legal Services Authority officer to verify whether X was being illegally detained. The appellant approached the Supreme Court challenging aspects of how the High Court handled the matter, particularly the process used to ascertain X's true wishes.
Decision Breakdown
The Supreme Court disposed of the appeal based on a judicial officer's report confirming X's wishes, but used the occasion to lay down detailed, mandatory guidelines for courts handling habeas corpus petitions and police-protection pleas involving intimate partners, especially same-sex, transgender, inter-faith or inter-caste couples. The guidelines require in-camera hearings, protecting the detained/missing person from being placed in the presence of the alleged detainers, respecting the person's chosen name and pronouns, ensuring the person is not pressured by the court, police or family, and immediately releasing the person if they express a wish not to return to the detainers. The Court emphasised that sexual orientation and gender identity are core zones of privacy and directed that no stigma or moral judgment be imposed by courts or court staff.
Lesson Learnt
Courts handling habeas corpus or protection pleas by intimate partners, particularly LGBTQ+ couples, must follow a compassionate, privacy-protecting procedure that centers the free will of the person allegedly detained, not the preferences of family or law enforcement.