Challenging the Special Marriage Act, 1954

GS paper  2

Syllabus: Social empowerment, Government policies and interventions for the development of the social sector and issues arising out of it, special marriage Act etc

Directions: These are contentious provisions. Know a few but no need to remember all.

Source: The Hindu

Context: The Supreme Court dismissed a writ petition challenging provisions of the Special Marriage Act (SMA), 1954 requiring couples to give a notice declaring their intent to marry 30 days before their marriage.

What does the petition seek?

• • • Article 21: This provision in the act violates the right to privacy of the parties.
    • Article 14: The requirement violates the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution since no other laws prescribe such a requirement.

What are the provisions that have been challenged?

• • • Section 5 of the SMA: It requires couples getting married under it to give notice to the Marriage Officer 30 days before the date of marriage.
    • Section 6: It requires notice to be entered into the Marriage Notice Book maintained by the Marriage Officer, which can be inspected by “any person desirous of inspecting the same.
    • Section 7: It provides the process for making an objection such as if either party has a living spouse, is incapable of giving consent due to “unsoundness of mind” or is suffering from a mental disorder resulting in the person being unfit for marriage or procreation.
    • Section 8:It Specifies the inquiry procedure to be followed after an objection has been submitted.

What did the Court say:

• • • SC rejected the writ petition on the grounds that the petitioner(35- year-old Athira Sujatha) was no longer an aggrieved party as she had already solemnized her marriage under SMA.

Rules and laws in different states:

• • • Haryana: The Haryana government has laid down 16 prerequisites which ask couples to issue a notice in a newspaper and that such notices be sent to their parents.
    • No-objection certificate: In certain States, couples have to seek a no-objection certificate from their parents.
    • Maharashtra: The Maharashtra Department of Registration and Stamps publicly shares the details of couples marrying under SMA on its website.
    • Love Jihad law: 11 States passed anti-conversion laws.example: Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh etc

How do these provisions make couples vulnerable?

• • • Harassment by anti-social elements: Public notices have been used by anti-social elements to harass couples getting married.
    • Officers’ incompetence: There have been instances, where marriage officers have gone over and beyond the law and sent such notices to the parents of the couple.
      • Example: Muslim woman in Delhi being confined to her house by her parents in March 2020.

Special Marriage Act:

• • • The SMA is a law which allows the solemnization of marriages without going through any religious customs or rituals.
    • People from different castes or religions or states get married under SMA in which marriage is solemnized by way of registration.

Insta Links:

Special Marriage Act 1954

Mains Links:

Q. Critically analyze the provisions of the special marriage Act 1954.

Prelims Links:

• Special Marriage Act
• Article 14 and 21