Hindu Marriage Requirements under Law

Essential Legal Conditions for Hindu Marriages

Hindu marriage requirements form the legal foundation for determining whether a marriage is valid under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. In our last post on Prohibited Degrees in Marriage and Sapinda Relationship, we explored how Hindu law prevents certain close relatives from marrying and how exceptions exist through custom. You can read it here: [Prohibited Degrees in Marriage and Sapinda Relationship]. In this post, we will examine all the necessary legal conditions for a Hindu marriage, why they exist, and the consequences if they are ignored.

Why requirements are essential in Hindu marriage law

The Hindu Marriage Act treats marriage not just as a religious sacrament but also as a legal contract. The requirements are safeguards that protect individuals from exploitation, prevent invalid unions, and ensure the stability of family structures. They uphold social morals, protect the health of future generations, and ensure that both spouses willingly enter into the relationship.

Key conditions under the Hindu Marriage Act

The Act specifies certain mandatory conditions for all Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs, as well as anyone governed by Hindu law. Each must be fulfilled for a marriage to be recognised in law.

1. Monogamy

At the time of marriage, neither party should have a living spouse. This prevents polygamy and ensures that one person can be married to only one person at a time. A second marriage during the subsistence of a valid first marriage is void and punishable under Section 494 of the Indian Penal Code.

Example: If Vikram marries Neeta while still married to Anju, the second marriage is void from the start.

2. Sound mind and valid consent

Both parties must be capable of giving valid consent. This means:

  • They are not of unsound mind.
  • They do not suffer from a mental disorder making them unfit for marriage and procreation.
  • They have not experienced repeated episodes of insanity.

If consent is obtained by force, fraud, or deception, the marriage becomes voidable.

Example: If Anil hides his severe mental illness before marriage, his wife can seek annulment.

3. Minimum age requirement

The groom must be at least 21 years old, and the bride at least 18 years old. These ages ensure maturity and the capacity to take on marital responsibilities. A marriage below these ages is not automatically void but is voidable at the request of the underage spouse upon attaining adulthood.

Example: If Kavya marries at 17, she can repudiate the marriage after turning 18.

4. Relationship restrictions

The couple must not be within prohibited degrees of relationship or be sapindas of each other, unless permitted by custom. These rules reduce the risk of genetic disorders in children and maintain social norms.

Example: Raj marries his mother’s brother’s daughter without custom permission – the marriage is void.

5. Ceremonies

A Hindu marriage must be solemnised according to the customary rites and ceremonies of either party. Common rites include:

  • Saptapadi – the couple takes seven steps around the sacred fire; marriage becomes complete upon the seventh step.
  • Kanyadaan – the formal giving away of the bride by her guardian.

Without valid ceremonies, a Hindu marriage is incomplete in law.

Legal effects of fulfilling these conditions

When these requirements are met:

  • Spouses gain mutual inheritance rights.
  • Either spouse can seek divorce on legal grounds.
  • Spouses can claim maintenance from each other.
  • Children are legitimate and have inheritance rights from both parents.

Consequences of not fulfilling the requirements

  • Violation of monogamy or prohibited relationship rules: Marriage is void from inception.
  • Invalid consent, mental incapacity, or underage marriage: Marriage is voidable and can be annulled.
  • No recognised ceremonies: Marriage is not legally valid.

Even if a marriage is void or voidable, Section 16 of the Hindu Marriage Act protects the legitimacy of children for inheritance from parents.

Importance of ceremonies in Hindu law

Ceremonies are not a mere tradition but a legal necessity. Courts have ruled that even with mutual consent and cohabitation, a marriage without required rites is invalid under Hindu law.

Example: A couple registered their marriage but performed no ceremonies — the court declared it invalid.

Hindu Marriage Requirements and Their Social Impact

Placing legal requirements on marriage serves to:

  • Prevent exploitation of vulnerable individuals.
  • Protect minors from early marriage.
  • Avoid close-blood marriages that may cause genetic disorders.
  • Ensure marriage is entered into willingly and with full awareness.
  • Maintain the stability of family units.

Practical examples

  1. Aditya and Priya meet all requirements, perform proper rites – valid marriage.
  2. Rohan marries while still married to his first wife – marriage void.
  3. Meena marries at 17 – can annul after turning 18.
  4. Arjun marries his cousin within prohibited degrees without custom – marriage void.

Summary

The hindu marriage requirements – monogamy, sound mind and valid consent, minimum age, freedom from prohibited relationships, and performance of ceremonies – are not optional. They are the legal backbone of Hindu marriage. Following them ensures the union is valid, protects spousal rights, and gives children full inheritance rights. Ignoring them can make a marriage void or voidable, with serious legal and social consequences.


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Retribution vs Reformation: Balancing Justice in Modern Criminal Law

INTRODUCTION –

Punishment is a fundamental objective of criminal law, with a goal to deter criminals from committing more crimes, in addition to providing justice to the victims. Punishments play an important role in ensuring societal well-being, in addition to replenishing the faith of the society in the legal system.
But, should the wrongdoer be given an opportunity to reform and re-enter the society as a better individual, or should they be punished harshly, that is a fundamental question. This question has been the matter of a long ongoing debate in the current legal scenario.
While the retributive approach aims at severe and harsh punishment to the victim, reformative approach advocates for opportunities that help rehabilitate offenders through relevant initiatives such as vocational training or therapy sessions.


RETRIBUTIVE APPROACH –

This approach works on the ‘Eye for an Eye’ model, where punishment is of the same intensity as of the crime, and that the offender must feel the same amount of suffering as felt by the victim.
This approach works on various principles, such as Principle of Responsibility (A Person may only be punished if he/she has voluntarily done something wrong), Principle of Proportionality (The punishment to an offence should either be equivalent to or match the intensity of the crime), and Principle of Just Requital (Victims should see the wrongdoer getting punished).
This approach can be considered as being victim centric, as it takes into account the pain and agony of the victims in deciding the punishment. Additionally, victims also tend to call for harsher punishments to the offenders for adequate discharge of justice and to ensure an appropriate closure. Also, grievous crimes such as the Nirbhaya Rape Case result in mass public outrage and render it necessary for the offenders to be given an adequate punishment for setting up a suitable precedent for future offenders.


INDIAN CONTEXT –

While India has seen a shift towards more of a Preventive or Reformative Approach, glimpses of the retributive approach can still be seen in various landmark cases, where the penalty is proportionate to the severity of the crime. Indian courts, while sentencing consider both the crime and the criminal, which aligns with the Retributive Approach.
For example, the tragic Delhi Rape Case (Nirbhaya, 2012) is a great example of application of the Retributive Approach, where, by the decision of the Supreme Court, 4 out of the 6 convicts were given death penalty, which is only given in the rarest of rare cases.


REFORMATIVE APPROACH –

In the words of Mahatma Gandhi – ‘Punish the Sin, Not the Sinner’
This approach differs fundamentally from the retributive approach, aiming towards rehabilitation and inclusivity for the offenders, by means of vocational trainings or skill development initiatives, which help them blend into the society and focus on re-building their life and livelihoods, addressing the objectives of both fairness to the victim as well as preserve the safety and security of the community.
Several initiatives, such as open prisons, prison education, vocational trainings etc. are seen to have shown a considerable improvement in such criminals. Additionally, the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, also advocates for reformative justice for minor offenders. Also, the recent inclusion of community service as a punitive measure under the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 is a landmark step forward with respect to this approach, where, under Section 4(f), the court may mandate community service as punishment for offenders, wherein they perform tasks that benefit the community without compensation.


INDIAN CONTEXT –

The Indian Constitution, by virtue of articles 72 and 161 authorise the president to pardon a wrongdoer, Section 54, IPC allows for commutation of death penalty into life imprisonment, the Probation of Offenders Act allows for discharge of a wrongdoer on account of good behaviour, and provisions such as Probation and Parole align with the principles of Reformative Approach.


RETRIBUTION VS REFORMATION – THE CONFLICT

While both the approaches work on their respective models, which ultimately aim for fair and just legal decisions, the conflict arises in their application. The retributive approach advocates harshness and severity of punishments, overlooking the perspective of the offender, and the adverse effects that such severe punishments can have on the lives of the individual. Long term prison sentences and large capital punishments may negatively affect the personal, social and professional lives of the individual.
However, there are two facets of every coin, and these approaches are no exception. While the Reformative Approach is in stark contrast to the Retributive Approach and advocates for leniency, the conflict still persists.
Leniency may not always work in case of crimes, especially the ones related to heinous offences such as sexual offences or women centric crimes. On the contrary, leniency in such cases may even promote such offenders, as fear of punishment may decrease, especially in the case of hardened criminals.
So, the question persists – which approach is better suited in the long run?


CONCLUSION – THE WAY FORWARD

The answer lies in the adoption of a mixed-model approach – where the positive aspects of both the approaches are simultaneously adopted to cater to the rights of both the victim and the offender. An example of this approach can be the provisions of the Probation of Offenders Act, allowing for discharge on account of good behaviour (Section – 4) (Reformation), but it is not applicable to conviction of such offences, the penalty for which is death or life imprisonment (Retribution).
Such an approach ensures that the punishment is neither too harsh for the offender to suffer nor too lenient for the victim and the crime to be forgotten or overlooked.


REFERENCES –

blog[dot]ipleaders[dot]in/reformative-theory-of-punishment/

www[dot]legalserviceindia[dot]com/legal/article-17100-analysing-community-service-as-a-mode-of-punishment-in-bharatiya-nyaya-sanhita-bns-2023.html

blog[dot]ipleaders[dot]in/theories-of-punishment-a-thorough-study/

www[dot]manupatra[dot]com/roundup/334/Articles/An%20eye%20for%20an%20eye%20will%20make%20the%20whole%20world%20blind.pdf


Himani Bhatnagar
3rd Year B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) Student
SVKM’s NMIMS, Indore

• Passionate about criminal law, justice reform, and legal academia.
• Contributor at Law Drishti | Research Writer

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/himani-bhatnagar-a26826301/

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