Special Marriage Act, 1954
- Posted By
10Pointer
- Categories
Polity & Governance
- Published
1st Sep, 2022
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Context
Recently, the Supreme Court dismissed a writ petition challenging provisions of the Special Marriage Act (SMA).
About the petition
- The petition challenged the Constitutional validity of certain provisions of the SMA under which couples seek refuge for inter-faith and inter-caste marriages.
- The writ petition has called these provisions violative of the right to privacy guaranteed under Article 21of the Constitution as they require couples to give a notice of 30 days before the date of marriage inviting objections from the public.
- The petition claims that the provisions contravene-
- Article 14 on prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste and sex.
- Article 15 on right to equality as these requirements are absent in personal laws.
Challenged Provisions
Special Marriage Act, 1954
- The Special Marriage Act, 1954 (SMA) was enacted to facilitate the marriage of couples professing different faiths, and preferring a civil wedding.
- However, some practical problems arise in registering such marriages.
- The law’s features on prior public notice being given and objections for the safety and privacy of those intending to marry across religions.
- To overcome this, many settle for marriage under the personal law of one of them, with the other opting for religious conversion.
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- 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.
