Open notice of intent to marry under Special Marriage Act is an invasion into privacy of couples, reeks of patriarchy: SC

The Supreme Court on April 20 said provisions of the Special Marriage Act which mandate a 30-day prior notice of intent to marry is steeped in patriarchy and exposes vulnerable couples to an “invasion” by the society.

The Supreme Court on April 20 said provisions of the Special Marriage Act which mandate a 30-day prior notice of intent to marry is steeped in patriarchy and exposes vulnerable couples to an “invasion” by the society.

A Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said forcing couples to put their intention to get married out in the open harked back to the era of the British Raj.

“The very object of the Special Marriage Act is to protect couples. But these provisions lay them open to invasion by society, by District Magistrates and Superintendents of Police,” Chief Justice Chandrachud observed orally.

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The Bench, also comprising Justices S.K. Kaul, S. Ravindra Bhat, Hima Kohli, and P.S. Narasimha, are hearing petitions to legally validate same-sex marriages by allowing them to be conducted under the Special Marriage Act of 1954.

However, senior advocate A.M. Singhvi and advocate Shadan Farasat said the mandate of prior and open notice of the intent to marry was sheer anathema to privacy, individual dignity and personal autonomy and choice. He urged the court to strike down these provisions.

Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran said these provisions were “retrograde and obnoxious”. He said how one of the provisions required fresh notice of intent to be put up in the public domain if the marriage was not solemnised within three months.