'Marriage is Sacred, Not Commercial Transaction', SC On Institution of Marriage

The Supreme Court termed marriage as sacred and asserted that mere registration of marriage in absence of a proper ceremony would not be valid under the Hindu Marriage Act.

New Delhi:The Supreme Court has said a marriage is sacred as it provides a lifelong, dignity-affirming, equal, consensual and healthy union of two individuals and mere registration of marriage in absence of a proper ceremony would not be valid under the Hindu Marriage Act. The apex court said a Hindu marriage is a samskara and a sacrament which has to be accorded its status as an institution of great value in Indian society.

A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Augustine George Masih said: “we urge young men and women to think deeply about the institution of marriage even before they enter upon it and as to how sacred the said institution is, in Indian society”.

The bench, in an order passed on April 19, said a marriage is not an event for ‘song and dance’ and ‘wining and dining’ or an occasion to demand and exchange dowry and gifts by undue pressure leading to possible initiation of criminal proceedings thereafter.

The bench said the critical conditions for the solemnizing of a Hindu marriage should be assiduously, strictly and religiously followed and this is for the reason that the genesis of a sacred process cannot be a trivial affair. “The sincere conduct of and participation in the customary rites and ceremonies under Section 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 ought to be ensured by all married couples and priests who preside over the ceremony”, said the bench.

“A marriage is not a commercial transaction. It is a solemn foundational event celebrated so as to establish a relationship between a man and a woman who acquire the status of a husband and wife for an evolving family in future which is a basic unit of Indian society”, it said.

The bench said that a Hindu marriage facilitates procreation, consolidates the unit of family and solidifies the spirit of fraternity within various communities. After all, a marriage is sacred for it provides a lifelong, dignity-affirming, equal, consensual and healthy union of two individuals, it added.

The bench criticized the practice of young men and women seeking to acquire the status of being a husband and a wife to each other in the absence of a valid marriage ceremony. “Under the provisions of the Act (Hindu Marriage Act, 1955), there should not only be compliance of the conditions as prescribed under Section 5 of the said Act but also the couple must solemnise a marriage in accordance with Section 7 of the Act. In the absence of there being any such marriage in accordance with Section 7 of the Act, a certificate issued in that regard by any entity is of no legal consequence”, said the bench.

The bench said any registration of a marriage as per the rules made by the state government would not be evidence of a Hindu marriage.

The bench said in recent years, we have come across several instances where for “practical purposes”, a man and a woman with the intention of solemnisation of their marriage at a future date seek to register their marriage under Section 8 of the Act on the basis of a document which may have been issued as proof of ‘solemnisation of their marriage’ such as in the instant case.

The apex court said a Hindu marriage is a samskara and a sacrament which has to be accorded its status as an institution of great value in Indian society and children born out of a valid Hindu marriage are legitimate and therefore, they have full rights in law.

The apex court made these observations while hearing a transfer petition and the petitioner and respondent claimed to have ‘solemnized’ their marriage on July 7, 2021. The bench noted the couple, who worked as commercial pilots, acquired a marriage certificate from Ghaziabad's based Vadik Jankalyan Samiti (Regd.), and used it for registration of marriage under the Uttar Pradesh government rules.

The couple decided to perform the marriage ceremony on a future date in October, 2022, but meanwhile differences developed between them, resulting in filing of multiple cases including dowry harassment and divorce.

"We note that parents of young couples agree for registration of a marriage in order to apply for a Visa for emigration to foreign countries where either of the parties may be working “in order to save time” and pending formalising a marriage ceremony. Such practices have to be deprecated," the bench added.

The apex court said: “It is considered to be an event that confers salvation upon the individual especially when the rites and ceremonies are conducted. The customary ceremonies, with all its attendant geographical and cultural variations is said to purify and transform the spiritual being of an individual”.

The apex court quashed three cases filed against each other by the couple as they agreed their marriage was not a valid one.