ATUL DINI Vs. DISTRICT REGISTRAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The writ petition is filed with the following prayers:

(2.) The petitioners, who are husband and wife, got married on 10/7/2022 in a ceremony conducted in accordance with the Hindu rites and customs. Since they are employed abroad, it was necessary for them to register the celebration of marriage under Sec. 15 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (for short, "the Act") before the second respondent. Pursuant to Ext.P1 application filed by them under Sec. 15 of the Act, Ext.P3 certificate of marriage celebrated in other forms was issued on 1/10/2022, however, without mentioning the actual date of celebration of marriage. Exts.P4 to P6 are the certificate of marriage celebrated in other forms in similar cases, wherein the actual date of celebration of marriage is shown. Though the first petitioner submitted Ext.P1 representation, requesting to mention the actual date of celebration of marriage in Ext.P3 certificate, it was replied as per Ext.P8 letter dtd. 19/10/2022 that the date of celebration of marriage cannot be included in the certificate since there is no provision to include the same as per the prevailing law. Aggrieved by Ext.P8 letter, the first petitioner approached the first respondent with Ext.P9 representation, however, it was also replied in the negative as per Ext.P10. It is in this context, the petitioners have come up before this Court.

(3.) The first respondent filed a counter affidavit and an additional counter affidavit, contending that the certificate of marriage is generated automatically by a software, viz., PEARL, designed in accordance with the prevailing Act. It was further contended that the present provisions permit the registering officer neither to enter the date of marriage celebrated in other forms in the marriage certificate nor to modify the marriage certificate generated online; and hence, the date of customary marriage cannot be added to the marriage certificate. According to them, Exts.P4 to P6 certificates were issued before implementation of the online service when the marriage officers manually entered the date of customary marriage in the certificates; and now, they are not in a position to reissue or alter the marriage certificates, which are generated through the PEARL software. It is pointed out that the certificate is issued under Sec. 18 of the Act.