In a current order whereas dismissing a legal revision plea, the Allahabad Excessive Court docket dominated that the ritual of Satpadi or seven pheras is sufficient to solemnise a Hindu marriage and ‘Kanyadan’ was not a vital ritual to solemnise a wedding below the Hindu Marriage Act. The court docket dominated that Part 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act offers solely “Saptpadi” (taking seven pheras by bridegroom and bride collectively earlier than the sacred hearth) as a necessary ceremony of a Hindu marriage.
The excessive court docket made this landmark remark whereas coping with a plea looking for a revision of a court docket order on the grounds that the wedding certificates filed by the prosecution talked about that the wedding was solemnised as per Hindu rituals. The revisionist claimed that the very fact of the “Kanyadan” ceremony wanted to be ascertained and due to this fact a re-examination was required which referred to as for summoning witnesses.
The excessive court docket mentioned that Part 311 of the CrPC empowers the court docket to summon any witness in case it’s important for a simply resolution of the case. Nonetheless, within the current matter, it appeared that witnesses had been being sought to be examined to merely show whether or not the ceremony of “Kanyadan” was carried out or not.
How Hindu Marriages Are Solemnised? What Does Part 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act Say?
“1) A Hindu marriage could also be solemnized in accordance with the customary rites and ceremonies of both occasion thereto.
2) The place such rites and ceremonies embody the saptpadi (that’s, the taking of seven steps by the bridegroom and the bride collectively
earlier than the sacred hearth), the wedding turns into full and binding when the seventh step is taken.”
Based on the order, Hindu Marriage Act merely offers saptpadi as a necessary ceremony of a Hindu marriage and it doesn’t present that the ceremony of kanyadan is important for solemnization of a Hindu marriage.
“Whether or not the ceremony of Kanyadan was carried out or not, wouldn’t be important for the simply resolution of the case and, due to this fact, a witness can’t be summoned below Part 311 Cr.P.C. for proving this truth,” the court docket dominated.
The order was handed by a bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi of Allahabad Excessive Court docket whereas disposing of a legal revision petition filed by one Ashutosh Yadav, difficult the trial court docket’s order in a legal case rejecting his plea to recall witnesses.
Kanyadan is a conventional ritual in Hindu marriages the place a father provides her daughter away to the groom.