Delhi HC to hear plea challenging 30-day notice to object inter-faith marriage

New Delhi [India], September 24 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Thursday said that it will hear a petition, challenging the procedure of issuance of public notice for 30 days inviting objections to the inter-faith marriage being registered under the Special Marriage Act, on October 1.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan adjourned the matter to a counsel representing the petitioner, who was the interfaith couple and was not available for arguing.
The petition was filed by advocates Utkarsh Singh, Md. Tauheed and Mohd. Humaid.
In the petition, they have sought to set aside the impugned procedure of issuance of public notice for 30 days inviting objections to the marriage as for solemnization and registration of marriages under the Special Marriage Act 1954.
The interfaith couple has sought a direction to concerned authorities to register the marriage of the petitioners with immediate effect.
The petition has also sought to declare Sections 6 and 7 of the Special Marriage Act as null and void and ultra vires to the constitution of India by holding it as illegal, null, void, ultravires, and unconstitutional to the Constitution of India.
It has also sought a direction to respondents to decide the objections on the basis of undertaking and certificates issued by government hospital or any other prescribed authority, submitted by the petitioners.
The petitioners said that they are directly affected and aggrieved by the impugned procedure for applying for registration of marriages under Sections 6 and 7 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 wherein public notice is issued inviting objections mentioned in section 4 of the SMA, 1954 to the marriage for next 30 days.
The petitioner submitted that objection under section 4(a) of the SMA, 1954 is based on a presumption and bias running against the inter-religious marriages and the same conditionality (neither party has a living spouse) can well arise in other religious marriages also but they are exempted from 30 days' notice period depriving petitioners of their life and liberty.
The couple knows each other for the last nine years as they met during their graduation from Delhi University. (ANI)