Punjab & Haryana HC Issues Guidelines to State, Police for Runaway Couples Seeking Protection
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has introduced new guidelines to ensure faster and more effective action when people or runaway couples report threats to their life or liberty. Justice Sandeep Moudgil emphasized the need for a quicker, administrative process to handle such complaints.

He mentioned that many protection pleas don’t even involve real threats, consuming valuable court time that could be used for more urgent cases. The key guidelines are: Each district will have a designated officer responsible for following up on complainants. Every police station will have an officer (at least an Assistant Sub-Inspector) who will handle these cases promptly.

Complaints will be forwarded to the relevant police officer the same day for quick investigation and an inquiry within 3 days. The officer’s decision will be communicated to all parties on the same day. An officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police will handle appeals within 7 days. A 24/7 helpdesk will be available at every district police office to manage these cases.

Quarterly meetings will ensure guidelines are being followed, with updates sent to senior police officials. Justice Moudgil stressed that these changes would improve transparency, accountability, and public trust in the state’s ability to protect people’s rights.

Source: – Live Law
By: – Rajat Ranjan
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