Annulment of Marriage Under Hindu Law
Annulment of Marriage Under Hindu Law
Annulment of Marriage Under Hindu Law
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Published on : August 31, 2014
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Kiruthika D Student B.A.,B.L.,
(Hons) School of Excellence in
Law
Marriage is necessarily the basis of social organization and the foundation of important legal
rights and obligations. In Hindu Law, Marriage is treated as a Samaskara or a Sacrament. A
Hindu marriage joins two individuals for life, so that they can pursue dharma (duty), artha
(possessions), kama (physical desires), and moksa (ultimate spiritual release) together. It
also joins two families together. The colours are normally red and gold. It is a vow between two people to stay together and uphold traditional
family values in accordance with Dharma. In the traditional Hindu system of marriage, there is no role for the state as marriage remained a
private affair within the social realm. Within this traditional framework reference, marriage is undoubtedly the most important transitional
point in a Hindus life and the most important of all the Hindu samskaras, or life-cycle rituals. Divorce, however is a thorny question and
Annulment is a very unusual remedy. In our modern world, an Annulment tends to be more a creature of religion than of law. Annulments are
rarely granted and when they are, very specific circumstances must exist.
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Basis of An Annulment
In Section 5 of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, there are some conditions laid down for a Hindu Marriage which must be fulfilled in case of any
marriage between two Hindus which can be solemnized in accordance with the requirements of this Act.
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Void Marriages
A marriage is automatically void and is automatically annulled when it is prohibited by law. Section 11 of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 deals
with:
Nullity of marriage and divorce- Void marriages - Any marriage solemnized after the commencement of this Act shall be null and void and
may, on a petition presented by either party thereto, against the other party be so declared by a decree of nullity if it contravenes any one of
the conditions specified in clauses (i), (iv) and (v), Section 5 mentioned above.
Bigamy - If either spouse was still legally married to another person at the time of the marriage then the marriage is void and no formal
annulment is necessary. Interfamily Marriage. A marriage between an ancestor and a descendant, or between a brother and a sister, whether
the relationship is by the half or the whole blood or by adoption. In M.M. Malhotra v. Union of India, the court held that husband married a
woman during subsistence of his first marriage. Such marriage being null and void, his subsequent marriage to another women would not be
case of plural marriage.
Marriage between Close Relatives. A marriage between an uncle and a niece, between an aunt and a nephew, or between first cousins,
whether the relationship is by the half or the whole blood, except as to marriages permitted by the established customs.
Voidable Marriages
A voidable marriage is one where an annulment is not automatic and must be sought by one of the parties. Generally, an annulment may be
sought by one of the parties to a marriage if the intent to enter into the civil contract of marriage was not present at the time of the marriage,
either due to mental illness, intoxication, duress or fraud
Section 12 of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 deals with Voidable Marriages> (1) Any marriage solemnized, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, shall be voidable and may be annulled by a decree of
nullity on any of the following grounds, namely:(a) that the marriage has not been consummated owing to the impotency of the respondent; or
(b) that the marriage is in contravention of the condition specified in clause (ii) of Section 5; or
(c) that the consent of the petitioner, or where the consent of the guardian in marriage of the petitioner was required under Section 5 as it
stood immediately before the commencement of the Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 1978, the consent of such guardian was
obtained by force or by fraud as to the nature of the ceremony or as to any material fact or circumstance concerning the respondent; or
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(d) that the respondent was at the time of the marriage pregnant by some person other than the petitioner.
2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), no petition for annulling a marriage(a) on the ground specified in clause (c) of sub-section (1) shall be entertained if(i) the petition is presented more than one year after the force had ceased to operate or, as the case may be, the fraud had been discovered ;
or
(ii) the petitioner has, with his or her full consent, lived with the other party to the marriage as husband or wife after the force had ceased to
operate or, as the case may be, the fraud had been discovered;
(b) on the ground specified in clause (d) of sub-section (1) shall be entertained unless the court is satisfied(i) that the petitioner was at the time of the marriage ignorant of the facts alleged;
(ii) that proceedings have been instituted in the case of a marriage solemnized before the commencement of this Act within one year of such
commencement and in the case of marriages solemnized after such commencement within one year from the date of the marriage; and
(iii) that marital intercourse with the consent of the petitioner has not taken place since the discovery by the petitioner of the existence of the
said ground.
Impotency - If either spouse was physically incapable of entering the marriage at the time of the marriage, usually because of a lack of ability
to have sexual intercourse, and if this inability appears incurable or if the spouse refuses to take any action to cure the inability, there are
grounds for an annulment. The inability must continue and must exist at the time of suit. In Laxmi Devi v. Babulal, the wife had no vagina at
all, though by surgical treatment an artificial vagina was formed, the husband is entitiled to a decree for nullity.
Lack of Mental Capacity - If the court finds that either spouse did not have ability to understand the nature of the marriage contract or the
duties and responsibilities of the marriage contract, then there may be grounds for an annulment. However, if the spouse who did not have the
ability to understand the contract gains the capacity to understand it and freely lives with the other spouse, then this ground does not apply. In
Pronab v. Krishna, it was held that Schizophrenia which is a type of lunacy is a ground for making the marriage as null and void.
A Party was Under the Age of Consent - Marriage under the legal age, may be annulled. The legal age for boys is 21 years and for girls is 18
years. A marriage by an underage party may become legally binding and incapable of annulment if the cohabitation of the parties as husband
and wife continues voluntarily after the person reached the age of consent. In Vinita Saxena v. Pankaj Pandit, it was held that where the
parties are young and the mental disorder is of such a type that sexual act and procreation of children is not possible, it may furnish a good
ground for nullifying the marriage.
Fraud or Force - If the consent to the marriage contract was obtained either by fraud or force, then there are grounds for an annulment. The
person who has been threatened or deceived about the marriage contract continues to live with the spouse after the discovery of the fraud or
the deception or after being forced into the marriage, it is possible that this ground will not apply. In Anurag Anand v. Sunita Anand, the court
held that false particulars in bio data based upon which the marriage was solemnized amounts fraud and the aggrieved party may annul the
marriage.
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Annulment Process
Now that no-fault divorce is readily available, marriage annulment is not very common. To get an annulment, a person first needs to meet the
residency requirements of the state that they live in. The jurisdictional requirements are similar to those required for dissolution or divorce:
one of the parties must live in the state where the marriage annulment is filed for a continuous ninety-day period. Similar to a divorce filing,
marriage annulment case proceeds with a filing, petition, summons, and ancillary documents. An annulment case can be initiated by either the
husband or the wife in the marriage. The grounds for marriage annulment are stated in the petition. A divorce can be much more complicated
than an annulment.
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