Kerala HC grants Monalisa's husband one-month transit bail in MP case
Synopsis
The viral Kumbh Mela face Monalisa Bhosle's inter-faith marriage has now triggered a multi-state legal battle. Kerala HC has shielded her husband Mohammed Farmaan from arrest for a month — but with POCSO, SC/ST Act and forgery charges stacked in Madhya Pradesh, and an age dispute over her birth certificate, this is far from over.
Key Takeaways
The Kerala High Court granted Mohammed Farmaan one-month transit anticipatory bail on 3 June 2025 .
Justice Kauser Edappagath directed that Farmaan shall not be arrested during this period.
The Madhya Pradesh Police case invokes the SC/ST Act , POCSO Act , Prohibition of Child Marriage Act , and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita provisions on abduction and forgery.
Monalisa Bhosle produced her Aadhaar, voter ID, and bank records to assert she was an adult at marriage.
Raju argued the Kerala HC lacked jurisdiction and that the SC/ST Act barred anticipatory bail.
Monalisa has moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court against the cancellation of her birth certificate.
The Kerala High Court on 3 June 2025 granted one-month transit anticipatory bail to Mohammed Farmaan, husband of Kumbh Mela viral sensation Monalisa Bhosle, in a criminal case lodged by Madhya Pradesh Police on a complaint filed by her father. The protection allows him to approach the appropriate courts in Madhya Pradesh to seek regular anticipatory bail.
What the court ordered
Justice Kauser Edappagath directed that Farmaan shall not be arrested for a period of one month, giving the inter-faith couple breathing room to pursue legal remedies in the home state where the case is registered. The verdict, reserved on Tuesday after detailed arguments, was pronounced while considering the couple's joint anticipatory bail plea.
The charges against Farmaan
Farmaan has been booked under several stringent provisions, including the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita covering abduction and forgery. The Madhya Pradesh Police case alleges that Monalisa was a minor at the time of the marriage and that the marriage certificate was obtained through fraudulent means.
The couple's defence
Appearing for the couple, advocate M. Sasindran argued the allegations were false, saying the two had fallen in love on a film set and later solemnised the marriage at Neyyattinkara in Kerala. He told the court that Monalisa's father had initially accepted the relationship but reversed his position after returning to Madhya Pradesh.
Monalisa filed an affidavit asserting she was an adult at the time of marriage, producing her Aadhaar card, election identity card, and bank account details as proof of age. The couple also flagged fears of honour-based violence if compelled to return to Madhya Pradesh, and alleged that attempts were under way to recast her as a minor by cancelling her original birth certificate and substituting one reportedly belonging to her younger brother. Monalisa has separately moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court challenging the cancellation of her birth certificate.
What the prosecution said
Opposing the plea, Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, appearing for the Madhya Pradesh authorities, argued that the Kerala High Court was not the appropriate forum since the FIR was registered in Madhya Pradesh, citing a Supreme Court ruling on jurisdiction in transit bail matters. The prosecution further submitted that the invocation of the SC/ST Act made the anticipatory bail plea legally non-maintainable due to statutory bars.
What happens next
The Kerala High Court had earlier extended interim protection from arrest to the couple after examining their marriage certificate. The latest order offers Farmaan temporary cover, but the substantive disputes — the validity of the marriage, the age question, and the criminal allegations — will be adjudicated by the competent courts in Madhya Pradesh in the weeks ahead.
Point of View
Inter-faith marriage, and the increasingly weaponised use of POCSO and SC/ST Act provisions in family disputes. The age question is the entire ball game — if Monalisa was indeed an adult, the criminal architecture collapses; if not, transit bail is a brief reprieve before a much harder fight. The reported cancellation of her original birth certificate, if accurate, raises serious questions about administrative due process that deserve scrutiny beyond this one case. Inter-faith couples continuing to flee to other states for safety is itself a quiet indictment that no headline is capturing.
NationPress
20 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did the Kerala High Court grant Mohammed Farmaan transit anticipatory bail?
The Kerala High Court granted one-month transit anticipatory bail so that Farmaan, who is based outside Madhya Pradesh, could safely travel to the state and approach the competent courts there for regular anticipatory bail. Justice Kauser Edappagath directed that he shall not be arrested during this one-month window.
What charges has Farmaan been booked under?
Farmaan has been booked under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, the POCSO Act, and sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to abduction and forgery. The case was registered by Madhya Pradesh Police on a complaint by Monalisa Bhosle's father.
Who is Monalisa Bhosle?
Monalisa Bhosle is a young woman who shot to viral fame during the Kumbh Mela and later married Mohammed Farmaan in Neyyattinkara, Kerala, after the two reportedly met during a film shoot. Her marriage triggered the criminal complaint by her father in Madhya Pradesh.
What did the Madhya Pradesh government argue against the bail?
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju argued that the Kerala High Court was not the appropriate forum because the FIR was filed in Madhya Pradesh, citing a Supreme Court ruling on transit bail jurisdiction. He also contended that the SC/ST Act's statutory bar made anticipatory bail non-maintainable.
What happens after the one-month bail expires?
Farmaan will need to approach the competent courts in Madhya Pradesh and seek regular anticipatory bail before the one-month protection lapses. Separately, Monalisa's challenge to the cancellation of her birth certificate is pending before the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
