No pre-nuptial counselling certificate, no marriage registration in Kerala

In an effort to curb marital violence, the Kerala Women's Commission wants the government to make pre-wedding counselling mandatory for couples. Marriage certificate will be issued only to those couples who undergo the pre-nuptial counselling

Thiruvananthapuram: The Women's Commission of Kerala would recommend the government to make pre-wedding counselling mandatory for couples who want their marriages registered. This counselling would help them cope with the challenges in married life, P. Sathidevi, Women's Commission Chairperson, has said.

The couples will have to produce a valid pre-wedding counselling certificate for registration of their marriages.

Cases of marital violence are on the rise in Kerala and many women have lost their lives, either killed or died by suicide following torture from the husband and in-laws.

The most recent cases that got national attention were the murder cases of Uthara and Vismaya. Uthra was poisoned to death by her husband using a snake for snatching her property and Vismaya, a 22-year-old Ayurveda Medical student, ended her life following prolonged torture from her husband Kiran Kumar, a motor vehicles inspector.