Anand Marriage Act 1909: 5 Crucial Facts SC Pushes

Anand Marriage Act, 1909

The Supreme Court (SC) recently directed 17 states and eight Union Territories (UTs) to frame rules for registering Sikh marriages under the Anand Marriage Act, 1909, within four months.

• Until these rules are framed, states and UTs must accept and register Anand Karaj marriages under existing marriage registration laws.
• The purpose is to allow Sikhs to register marriages according to their religious tradition, something that has not been uniformly available so far.

The Act and Its Amendment:

• Anand Karaj is a Sikh religious ceremony meaning “blissful union“, performed in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib.
• Initially, there was no specific provision for registering such marriages.
• In 2012, the Anand Marriage (Amendment) Act introduced Section 6, requiring state governments to frame rules for registration.
• However, most states and UTs have not framed these rules, leaving Sikh couples to register under other laws.

Supreme Court’s Intervention:

• In 2022, a petition was filed highlighting the lack of registration rules, which caused practical problems:

• No marriage certificate for proof.
• Issues related to residence, maintenance, inheritance, and succession.

• The SC held that:

• States have a “positive duty” to create a functional registration system.
• Failure to frame rules withholds statutory benefits Parliament has conferred.
• Applications for registration cannot be refused simply because the state has not yet framed rules.

Lingering Issues:

• Currently, most Sikh couples register under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HMA), which doesn’t:

• Include provisions for divorce or matrimonial disputes specific to Sikh customs.
• Reflect Sikh identity and religious practices adequately.

• The 2012 amendment addressed registration but did not cover divorce, leading to dissatisfaction among Sikh community leaders.

Community Concerns:

• Leaders argue that the current framework is too narrow and symbolically limited.
• They demand:

• Comprehensive rules reflecting Sikh marriage traditions and customs.
• A legal framework that provides practical rights and remedies, not just symbolic recognition.

 About Anand Marriage Act, 1909:

The Anand Marriage Act, 1909 was enacted by the British Government to legally recognize Sikh marriages conducted through the Anand Karaj ceremony.

Background & Historical C:

• Before 1909, Sikh marriages were often registered under the Hindu Marriage customs, which did not reflect Sikh religious identity.
• The Anand Karaj (meaning “blissful union”) is the traditional Sikh marriage ceremony performed in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhism.
• There was a growing demand within the Sikh community to have their unique marriage rituals legally recognized.
• This demand became politically significant with the rise of Sikh reform movements such as the Singh Sabha Movement.

As a result, the British enacted the Anand Marriage Act, 1909, giving statutory recognition to Sikh marriages performed via Anand Karaj.

Key Features of the Act (1909):

Recognition of Anand Karaj

• Legally recognized marriages performed through the Anand Karaj ceremony.
• Aimed to protect the religious identity and practices of Sikhs.

Religious Ceremony Based

• The Act did not initially provide for registration of marriages.
• It simply acknowledged that a marriage solemnized via Anand Karaj was valid in the eyes of the law.

Limited Scope

• The Act was purely ceremonial and did not cover divorce, maintenance, succession, or inheritance.
• Sikh couples still had to rely on other legal frameworks (e.g., Hindu Marriage Act) for these matters.

Need for Amendment:

• Over time, practical challenges emerged:
  • Sikh couples lacked official marriage certificates, leading to difficulties in:
    • Proving marital status
    • Immigration
    • Property and inheritance disputes
    • Legal benefits like maintenance and succession
  • Many states did not have uniform rules for registering Sikh marriages.
• Sikh couples were forced to register their marriages under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, which was symbolically problematic, as it failed to distinguish Sikh identity.

Anand Marriage (Amendment) Act, 2012:

To address these gaps, Parliament passed an amendment in 2012.

Key Provisions:

Introduction of Section 6

• Directed state governments to frame rules for registration of marriages solemnized through Anand Karaj.

Voluntary Registration

• Once registered, there was no need to register under any other marriage law like the Hindu Marriage Act.

Preservation of Sikh Identity

• The amendment was a symbolic recognition of Sikhs as a separate religious community.

Limitations of the 2012 Amendment:

• Did not include provisions for divorce, maintenance, or matrimonial disputes.

Left the framing of rules to individual state governments, many of which failed to implement them.