India Supreme Court bars bias over consensual relationships

In a significant ruling on personal liberty and social norms, the Supreme Court of India has held that a consensual relationship between unmarried adults cannot be used to judge a person's character or deny them government employment. The judgment, delivered on June 8, 2026, restored the appointment of a police constable recruit in Telangana whose selection was cancelled due to a past criminal case linked to a failed romantic relationship.

The case involved Gajula Thirupathi, a candidate selected for the post of Stipendiary Cadet Trainee Police Constable. The Telangana State Level Police Recruitment Board cancelled his appointment because a criminal case had been registered against him in 2014. The complaint, filed by a woman who was his neighbour, alleged he had established a relationship on the promise of marriage but later married someone else. The case was settled before a Lok Adalat in 2015, and Thirupathi had disclosed the matter during recruitment.

A bench comprising Justices Manmohan and Manoj Misra set aside the board's decision, criticizing its reasoning as defying logic. The court ruled that authorities cannot draw adverse conclusions about a candidate's character...