Rajasthan: Marriage Of Two Convicts To Turn Jodhpur's Mandore Open Jail Into A Wedding Venue

Jodhpur: Thanks to an order of the Rajasthan High Court, the Mandore Open Jail in Jodhpur is all set to become a wedding venue. In what is being termed as a landmark in India’s legal history, the Court has given permission to two convicts serving a life sentence to marry inside the prison.

Mula Ram is serving his term for the murder of his neighbour, while Seema Ghadse is serving life for murdering her husband. A division bench of the High Court, comprising Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati and Justice Praveer Bhatnagar, issued the order allowing their marriage, while disposing of Nagaur resident Mula Ram's temporary suspension petition.

Mula Ram has been serving his sentence since January 16, 2017. His lawyer Kaluram Bhati said he wishes to marry Seema, who is currently on a 40-day parole. The petition stated that marriage would strengthen the rehabilitation and reform process for both, and allow them to live a normal family life in future.

The High Court cited a previous decision that recognised prisoners' marital and childbearing rights as within the scope of Article 21. According to Justice Bhati, the wedding could take place on July 22. The court ruled that the marriage of two consenting adults is a fundamental right protected under Article 21 of the Constitution (Right to Life and Personal Liberty), serving a core objective of prisoner rehabilitation.

A report submitted by the government confirmed the couple's desire to marry. During the hearing, the public prosecutor also stated that the government had no objection to a legal marriage in the open prison as per the prison rules. The division bench stated that marriage is a fundamental institution of society and even convicted prisoners cannot be denied the right to marry with consent.

The High Court has directed that a maximum of 21 members from each side, along with a priest, may attend the wedding ceremony at the open prison. The jail administration will decide on any additional guests. Prior notice of the wedding date will be required and Mula Ram will bear the entire cost of the ceremony.

A resident of Adsinga in Nagaur, Mula Ram comes from a family of farmers. His father had a dispute with a neighbour. In 2017, Mula Ram took the young neighbour out on his motorbike and the latter’s dead body was later found in a ditch. The court found Mula Ram guilty of murder and he was sentenced to life imprisonment in August 2023. For the last two years, he has been serving as the Sarpanch of Mandore Jail.

Seema is originally from a place near Mumbai in Maharashtra. In 2016, she married Kaushalraj Arora of Ghantaghar area of Jodhpur. Unhappy with this marriage, which was solemnised against her will, she slit the veins of both her husband's hands with a sharp object, while he was sleeping, just two months after the wedding, killing Kaushalraj. In 2019, a court sentenced Seema to life imprisonment.