Government mandates states and territories to establish registration procedures for Sikh Anand Karaj marriages within a duration of four months
The Supreme Court of India, in a landmark ruling on September 4, 2021, has issued directions to all States and Union Territories (UTs) to notify rules for registering marriages solemnised through the Sikh religious ceremony of Anand Karaj within a period of four months.
The ruling, which comes in the case of Amanjot Singh Chadha vs. Union of India & Ors., was presided over by Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta. The petitioner, a Sikh, had approached the Supreme Court seeking directions to operationalise Section 6 of the Anand Marriage Act, 1909 (as amended in 2012), which requires States to register Anand Karaj marriages.
The Court clarified that no application for registration of an Anand Karaj marriage or for a certified extract shall be refused on the sole ground that rules under Section 6 of the Act have not yet been notified. Until such rules are framed, such marriages can be registered under existing marriage registration laws.
In Goa, the Union government is asked to extend the Anand Marriage Act under the Goa, Daman and Diu (Administration) Act, 1962, and the UT must frame rules. In Sikkim, interim registrations are to be allowed under the 1963 marriage rules, with a future proposal to extend the Anand Marriage Act to Sikkim under Article 371F of the Constitution.
The respondent-Union and States were represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj. The petitioner was represented by advocates Sanpreet Singh Ajmani, Amonjyot Singh Chadda, Amitoz Kaur, Amit Kumar, and Shivani Agraheri.
The Court noted that Parliament had amended the Anand Marriage Act in 2012 to insert Section 6, which requires States to frame rules for registration of Anand Karaj marriages, maintain a marriage register, and provide certified extracts. The officials authorized to oversee compliance with the registration guidelines for Anand Karaj marriages in the respective states and Union territories are typically designated government officers in the local civil registration or marriage registration departments, such as the Registrar of Marriages or other appointed officers under the relevant Indian state or Union territory regulations.
Each State and Union Territory must designate a Secretary-level officer to oversee compliance and ensure that no application for Anand Karaj registration is refused for want of rules. The Union of India is ordered to act as a coordinating authority, circulate model rules to States, and publish a consolidated compliance report within six months.
The authorities should mention in the marriage certificate that the marriage was solemnised under the Sikh rite, as directed by the Court. The Supreme Court ruling emphasised that in a secular republic, the State must not turn a citizen's faith into either a privilege or a handicap.
This directive is significant as many States and UTs have not implemented the mandate to register Anand Karaj marriages, leaving Sikh couples without equal access to marriage certification. The ruling aims to ensure that all marriages solemnised under the Sikh rite are duly recognised and registered by the State.
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