DATE: 9th March, 2021
JUDGES
• Ritu Bahri
• Archana Puri
PARTIES
Ami Ranjan & Anr. (APPELLANT)
State of Haryana & Anr. (RESPONDENT)
SUBJECT: The following judgement deals with provision for registration of marriage under Special Marriage Act, 1954. The question before the court was whether registration of marriage via videos call can be permitted without the parties appearing in person before the marriage officer.
AN OVERVIEW
- In the present case, the Punjab and Haryana High Court is hearing an appeal made by a married couple against a single bench judgement which has dismissed the application filed by the appellant for conducting second motion hearing through video conferencing for registration of marriage.
- The appellant no. 1 is an IT Consultant and Publicist in London who was married to appellant no. 2, a doctor in USA. After marriage was completed as per Hindu rituals, both of them returned to their workplace.
- An application for registration of marriage was filed before the Marriage Officer and it was requested that appellant no. 2 be permitted to appear thorough video call for moving the application which was allowed and the marriage officer ordered them to appear before the court on 3rd April 2020.
- However, before the said date, there was COVID-19 spread all over the world and both of them could not return to India. On account of these circumstances, the appellant no. 1 made an application before the Marriage Officer requesting him to conduct second motion hearing through video conferencing. It was contended that the wife being a medical professional was put to COVID-19 emergency duty and the husband can meet her in USA only if he has a marriage certificate. The absence of same is causing trouble for both of them. The appellants relied on the judgement given in Charanjit Kaur Negi vs. Govt. of NCT Delhi where it was held that parties can be asked to be present before the Embassy/Consulate of India in United States and United Kingdom to authenticate their identity. Thereafter, identity of the appellants can be verified through the Government authorities in the respective countries.
- This contention was rejected by the singe judge stating that as per the prescribed procedure for registration of marriage, the parties are required to be present along with witnesses. Also, as per the provisions, a marriage certificate book has to be signed which cannot be done through distant mode.
- Therefore it was held that the Marriage Certificate Book is a public document, which is being maintained at a particular office of a District Marriage Officer; its integrity and authenticity cannot be altered.
- Aggrieved by this observation, the couple filed the present appeal before the High Court seeking permission for aforementioned reasons. The appellants put reliance on the judgement given in the case of Upasana Bali and another vs. State of Jharkhand and others, in which it was held that presence of the parties could be secured through video conference in specific cases, where such procedure requires because of the peculiar facts of such cases.
- On the contrary, the respondent relying on sections 15, 16, 18 and 47 of the act contended that the presence of the appellants and their signatures in the Marriage Certificate Book are mandatory and cannot be done away only on the account of their working conditions and personal compulsions causing difficulties for them. The respondent put reliance on the verdict given in Deepak Krishan and another vs. District Registrar, Ernakulam and others, where it was held that Sections 15 and 16 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 are mandatory in nature. Further it was argued that in Sarala Baby vs. State of Kerala, it was held that if registration of marriage is permitted without personal appearance, then this facility can be greately abused.
IMPORTANT PROVISIONS
SPECIAL MARRIAGE ACT
- Section 47- Marriage Certificate Book to be open to inspection—
(1) The Marriage Certificate Book kept under this Act shall at all reasonable times be open for inspection and shall be admissible as evidence of the statements therein contained.
(2) Certified extracts from the Marriage Certificate Book shall, on application, be given by the Marriage Officer to the applicant on payment by him of the prescribed fee.
- Section 15- Registration of marriages celebrated in other forms—Any marriage celebrated, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, other than a marriage solemnized under the 1Special Marriage Act, 1872 (III of 1872) or under this Act, may be registered under this Chapter by a Marriage Officer in the territories to which this Act extends if the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:—
(a) a ceremony of marriage has been performed between the parties and they have been living together as husband and wife ever since;
(b) neither party has at the time of registration more than one spouse living;
(c) neither party is an idiot or a lunatic at the time of registration;
(d) the parties have completed the age of twenty-one years at the time of registration;
(e) the parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship: Provided that in the case of a marriage celebrated before the commencement of this Act, this condition shall be subject to any law, custom or usage having the force of law governing each of them which permits of a marriage between the two; and
(f) the parties have been residing within the district of the Marriage Officer for a period of not less than thirty days immediately preceding the date on which the application is made to him for registration of the marriage.
- Section 16- Procedure for registration—Upon receipt of an application signed by both the parties to the marriage for the registration of their marriage under this Chapter the Marriage Officer shall give public notice thereof in such manner as may be prescribed and after allowing a period of thirty days for objections and after hearing any objection received within that period, shall, if satisfied that all the conditions mentioned in section 15 are fulfilled, enter a certificate of the marriage in the Marriage Certificate Book in the form specified in the Fifth Schedule, and such certificate shall be signed by the parties to the marriage and by three witnesses
- Section 18- Effect of registration of marriage under this Chapter—Subject to the provisions contained in sub-section (2) of section 24, where a certificate of marriage has been finally entered in the Marriage Certificate Book under this Chapter, the marriage shall, as from the date of such entry, be deemed to be a marriage solemnized under this Act, and all children born after the date of the ceremony of marriage (whose names shall also be entered in the Marriage Certificate Book) shall in all respects be deemed to be and always to have been the legitimate children of their parents: Provided that nothing contained in this section shall be construed as conferring upon any such children any rights in or to the property of any person other than their parents in any case where, but for the passing of this Act, such children would have been incapable of possessing or acquiring any such rights by reason of their not being the legitimate children of their parents.
ISSUES: The sole issue before the court in the present case was whether the Marriage Certificate Book, as prescribed in the 5th Schedule, has to be signed by both parties to the marriage along with three witnesses or whether this process can be done by video conference?
ANALYSIS OF THE JUDGEMENT
- While answering the argument as placed by the respondents stating the provision of section 15 is mandatory in nature, the court looked into Deepak Krishan’s case as referred by the respondent and stated that the judgement is not applicable in the present circumstances and was not mandatory but directory. Non compliance of this provision would not render the application for registration of marriage against the provisions of Section 15 of the Act.
- The case further observed that Sarla Baby’s was also not applicable as i the referred case, the parties were seeking a total exemption from appearance while in the present case, the appellant is asking for a hearing via video conferencing.
- Moreover, the court looked into the judgement given in Karthika Salinkumar vs. Secretary Chempu Grama Panchayath and others, wherein, due to the restrictions caused by pandemic, the Kerala High Court allowed registration of marriage of petitioner by securing presence of her husband through video conferencing and thereafter, issued marriage certificate to the petitioner, after obtaining the signatures of the petitioner.
- To answer the issue of presence of parties and signature in Marriage Certificate Book the division bench referred to Pardeep Kodiveedu Cletus vs. Local Registrar of Marriages (Common), where it was held that personal appearance of the parties to the marriage can be dispensed with by the Local Registrar. Moreover, the Local Registrar is empowered to obtain their personal appearance through video conferencing.
- As for presence of witnesses the court the decision given in Praful Desai’s case in which the court held that statement of witness can be recorded by way of video conference in the presence of his pleader/counsel under Section 273 Cr.P.C.
- Thus, in the concerned case, the division bench held that the presence of appellant no. 2 can be secured through video conferencing and presence of husband-Ami Ranjan and three witnesses can be marked by their appearance in the office of Registrar of Marriages.
- The certificate will be issued after verification as per the statutory provisions. The court further held that no violation of section 47 will be permitted and the certificate will be made part of the public record after issuance of the same.
- Thus the court held-
"In this case, presence of Misha Verma (Wife) can be secured through video conferencing, and presence of husband-Ami Ranjan and three witnesses can be marked by their appearance in the office of Registrar of Marriages. Then, the certificate of marriage can be issued on doing verification of facts as contemplated under Sections 15 and 16 of the Special Marriage Act. Once, the marriage certificate is issued, it can be made part of the public record under Section 47 of the Act by entering it into the Marriage Certificate Book.”
CONCLUSION
- The COVID-19 pandemic has deeply affected the working system around the globe. Work from home via online platform has become, as they say it, the new normal. Among all these rapid changes happening around us, the regarding the procedural system were not updated to the new normal dating back to when the appellant filed an application for the registration of their marriage.
- However, in the meantime, the courts have also adopted the online methods of hearing and many state courts were using the online platforms for their work.
- In the present issue, it is rightly decided by the court to allow the couple for registration of marriage through video call as they never sought exemption from appearing before the courts, rather, the circumstances created by the pandemic has left no choice. Therefore, the decision given the Punjab and Haryana High Court is praiseworthy and a step towards implying the advancements of science in judicial procedures.
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