The recent episode of Asanda village where some noblest of the human race (Jats, of course!) forced their divine intervention upon a happily and LEGALLY married couple simply because there don’t seem to be other social problems in that village like drinking problems amongst its youth, illiteracy for its residents, lack of sanitary conditions in its streets etc. prompted me to have a look at the Hindu Marriage Act, known as the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955.
This document is one of the worst pieces of legally written garbage I have ever come across. Perhaps only Indian legislators could have wasted their time on such a feat. Let me explain. Like any other legal document, most of its contents are huambo-jumbo, and here I extract the core ones.
A. The Act defines a prohibited relationship as follows:
Two persons are said to be within the degrees of prohibited relationships
if one is a lineal ascendant of the other, or
if one was the wife or husband of a lineal ascendant or descendant of the other; or
if one was the wife of the brother or of the father's or mother's brother of the grandfather's or grandmother's brother of the other, or
if the two are brother and sister, uncle and niece, aunt and nephew, or children of brother and sister or of two brothers or of two sisters;
B. The clause also defines Sapinda Relationships:
"sapinda relationship" with reference to any person extends as far as the third generation (inclusive) in the line of ascent through the mother, and the fifth (inclusive) in the line of ascent through the father, the line being traced upwards in each case from the person concerned, who is to be counted as the first generation;
Two persons are said to be "sapindas" of each other if one is a lineal ascendant of the other within the limits of sapinda relationship, or if they have a common lineal ascendant who is within the limits of sapinda relationship with reference to each of them;
Well, we all can understand above definitions and explanations. But, then under Conditions for a Hindu Marriage in section 5 of the Act, it is declared that
A marriage may be solemnized between any two Hindus, if the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:
The parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits of a marriage between the two;
The parties are not sapindas of each other, unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits of a marriage between the two.
Furthermore,
In 1946 Hindu Marriage Disabilities Removal Act legalized intermarriage between the subdivisions of same caste and those within one's gotra and pravara.
Here is the garbage. There is no law (none whatsoever) that can prevent you from marrying anyone even in ‘Prohibited Relation’ or ‘Sapinda Relation’. All you have to declare is that it is within our custom. Surely enough, in Tamil Nadu for instance, Hindu Brahmins consider marrying their nieces (sisters’ daughters) a preferred option. Children of brother and sister also marry each other. In north India, situation is a little different. They try to avoid several gotras. Wonder why? In South they don’t. They are all Hindus and thus are within the Hindu Marriage Act. Please take note I am not criticizing any particular custom here. I am pointing out a useless piece of legislation called Hindu Marriage Act.
In essence, here is practical Hindu Marriage Act:
“Groups or people can choose to engage in their preferences for marriages and there is no legal precedence to challenge their choices.”
This document is one of the worst pieces of legally written garbage I have ever come across. Perhaps only Indian legislators could have wasted their time on such a feat. Let me explain. Like any other legal document, most of its contents are huambo-jumbo, and here I extract the core ones.
A. The Act defines a prohibited relationship as follows:
Two persons are said to be within the degrees of prohibited relationships
if one is a lineal ascendant of the other, or
if one was the wife or husband of a lineal ascendant or descendant of the other; or
if one was the wife of the brother or of the father's or mother's brother of the grandfather's or grandmother's brother of the other, or
if the two are brother and sister, uncle and niece, aunt and nephew, or children of brother and sister or of two brothers or of two sisters;
B. The clause also defines Sapinda Relationships:
"sapinda relationship" with reference to any person extends as far as the third generation (inclusive) in the line of ascent through the mother, and the fifth (inclusive) in the line of ascent through the father, the line being traced upwards in each case from the person concerned, who is to be counted as the first generation;
Two persons are said to be "sapindas" of each other if one is a lineal ascendant of the other within the limits of sapinda relationship, or if they have a common lineal ascendant who is within the limits of sapinda relationship with reference to each of them;
Well, we all can understand above definitions and explanations. But, then under Conditions for a Hindu Marriage in section 5 of the Act, it is declared that
A marriage may be solemnized between any two Hindus, if the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:
The parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits of a marriage between the two;
The parties are not sapindas of each other, unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits of a marriage between the two.
Furthermore,
In 1946 Hindu Marriage Disabilities Removal Act legalized intermarriage between the subdivisions of same caste and those within one's gotra and pravara.
Here is the garbage. There is no law (none whatsoever) that can prevent you from marrying anyone even in ‘Prohibited Relation’ or ‘Sapinda Relation’. All you have to declare is that it is within our custom. Surely enough, in Tamil Nadu for instance, Hindu Brahmins consider marrying their nieces (sisters’ daughters) a preferred option. Children of brother and sister also marry each other. In north India, situation is a little different. They try to avoid several gotras. Wonder why? In South they don’t. They are all Hindus and thus are within the Hindu Marriage Act. Please take note I am not criticizing any particular custom here. I am pointing out a useless piece of legislation called Hindu Marriage Act.
In essence, here is practical Hindu Marriage Act:
“Groups or people can choose to engage in their preferences for marriages and there is no legal precedence to challenge their choices.”