­(a) The ethical conflict, in question here is if I would be willing to help them despite the fact that the woman is the daughter of a leader of the ruling party. Evidently, from the situation, it can be comprehended that the families of the couple are dangerous. They are not only threatening the couple but they also might possess a threat to me and my position as the Head of the Police Force.

According to me, there is no other ethical dilemma present. To me, the situation is clear. The couple is in danger, and as the upholder of law in the city, it is my duty to protect them. Any social or ethical values which can hinder me from protecting them should be discarded, in the first place. 

(b) Strategy to address the problem:

1. Legal protection will be provided to the couple, with officers guarding their place of residence 24/7 till the situation gets settled.
2. I will arrange a meeting between the two families and the couple, under police surveillance, so that the problem can be navigated without any legal or formal complications, through communication and understanding.
3. If they refuse to communicate their grievances, I will have a one-on-one with the daughter’s father, in an attempt to make him understand that the daughter was not “abducted” as she is not a minor, and has legally consented to elope with the man. 
4. If the situation escalates, I will take legal action against the families for threatening the couple. 
5. This step does not concern the couple. It is regarding how my position may be threatened, if through the father’s political sources, I am unfairly transferred. Here is what I would do to prevent that or if that happens:

• I will talk to my direct supervisor, regarding the case and tell him beforehand about the threat I am facing. 
• I will delegate the task of protecting the couple to other officers in my department, in case of my absence in future.
• I will also talk to the new head of the force, to try to get to an understanding about how protecting the couple is important as our duty.
• I will talk to the couple and inform them that they might not be safe in case I get removed as the head of the local police force. I would warn them of the danger, and ask them to escape accordingly.

(c)

• Inter-caste marriage: The reason why the couple had to elope was because they knew their relationship would never be accepted. It was because of the difference in their castes. People tend to argue against reservation, claiming that caste difference no longer exists, but one only needs to open a newspaper and come face to face with the honor killings caused due to hatred towards a particular caste, in order to comprehend the reality.
• Social acceptance: Another reason why the families were in disapproval of the relationship was their fear of being humiliated in eyes of the society, for not having “enough control over their daughter.” People fear being talked about, and a couple eloping becomes one of the favourite topics of gossip for society. It is said to bring “shame” to the family.
• Concept of “shame”, ” chastity” and “purity”: It is especially in case of a woman. A woman is supposed to be ” chaste” and “morally upright” and “of good character” according to society. Thus, any woman who is comfortable in her own skin and sexuality is labelled as “promiscuous” by the standard of social norms. Here, too, the problem lies in the fact that the family claims that the woman has been abducted because they refuse to believe that she could take a decision on her own, with respect to her choice of partner. This acts as a major obstruction in efforts being made for women’s emancipation.
• Marriage as the sole good: Heteronormative tenet declares marriage as the “happily ever after.” Here, since the couple did not marry each other yet lived together, the families are threatening to do the worst i.e., to cause harm to them, because they did not meet the societal expectations of what a couple should entail.
• Economic differences: The issue is not only based on caste, but also upon class. Yet, the two are usually used synonymously because in current Indian society, class apparently comes into play on the basis of caste. The woman, belonging to the upper social stratum of caste, is also economically well-off with her father being a leader of the ruling party. That is not the case for the man, as he belongs to a lower caste.