INDER SINGH Vs. SADHU SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The facts out of which this case has arisen are shortly these: The petitioner Inder Singh filed a complaint before the Police Magistrate of Alipore alleging that his wife Durgi had left his house taking with her a sum of Rs. 200 in cash, and some clothes and utensils. The case was transferred for inquiry to an Honorary Magistrate who examined Inder Singh and some of his witnesses. Inder Singh in his deposition stated that he had discovered that Durgi was living with two men, Sadhu Singh and Sohoni, at Budge-Budge. The Magistrate thereupon summoned Sadhu Singh and Sohoni to stand their trial for an offence under Section 498, Indian Penal Code. Other witnesses were examined but the Magistrate was not satisfied with the evidence, and discharged the two accused persons. Inder Singh moved the learned Additional District Magistrate for a further inquiry, but his petition was dismissed by the Magistrate who recorded a judgment in which he observed as follows: As regards the merits of the case, I am of opinion that the order of discharge is right, if it were only on the ground that the alleged marriage between Durgi and the complainant has not been proved. It is the case of the defence that Durgi was never the legally married wife of the complainant but that she used to reside in his house as his mistress. To disprove this point the complainant examined several witnesses. All the witnesses including the complainant in his examination-in-chief stated that the complainant was a Hindu Brahmin and that the marriage was according to Hindu rites. In cross-examination before charge, however, the complainant admitted he was a Sikh and not a Hindu. This demolishes his case entirely. A marriage between a Sikh and a Hindu even if it had actually taken place according to Hindu rites could not be legal.

(2.) I shall return to this judgment later, but here it may be noted that there was evidence on the complainant's side regarding the following points; that though he was a Sikh, Inder Singh claimed nevertheless to be a Hindu Brahmin; that Durgi was a Hindu of the Brahmin caste; that a ceremony of marriage had taken place; that it was according to Hindu rites. The present rule is against the order of the learned Additional District Magistrate, dismissing the petitioner's application for a further inquiry, and in support of it, Mr. Roy Chaudhuri has urged that the a Magistrate erred in holding, as lie has in effect held, that no valid marriage could take place between a Sikh Brahmin man and a Hindu Brahmin woman. Mr. Roy Chaudhury has contended that a marriage between such parties according to Hindu rites is perfectly valid, and there is evidence that such a marriage in fact took place. Therefore two questions arise : (1) A question of capacity - can there be a valid marriage between a Sikh man, who claims to be a Brahmin and a Hindu woman who is of that caste? (2) A question of the binding nature of the ceremony - would a ceremony which would be b binding in the case of Brahmins, be binding in the present case?

(3.) As the case is one of importance, as it is not entirely free from difficulty and as no one appeared to show cause, we requested Mr. Hiralal Chakravarti to assist us as amicus curiae. We are obliged to him, as well as to Mr. Roy Chaudhuri, for indicating the path of our inquiry and for directing our attention to authorities, both historical and judicial which illuminate that path. The argument which favours the view that the marriage is valid is briefly as follows : Amongst the Sikhs there is a branch of the community which recognises caste. Such caste is referable to Hindu ancestors, and is merely a continuation or perpetuation through heredity of the Hindu caste into which the ancestor was born. Its legal significance for purposes of marriage in the case of those Sikhs who have never really abandoned caste, depends upon whether such Sikhs are governed by the Hindu law of marriage. This question in its turn depends upon whether the Sikhs who recognise caste can be regarded as ever having completely left the Hindu fold. If they cannot be so regarded, then they are governed by the Hindu law. But even if it cannot be strictly said that Sikhs are still Hindus in the true religious sense they would nevertheless still be governed by Hindu law in those matters regarding which no other law has been either enacted by statute for the Sikhs, or established by custom amongst them. In this connexion it is pointed out that amongst the Sikhs a form of marriage known as the "Anand" form grew up by custom, and was later given statutory recognition. But this it is said is an optional and alternative form of marriage, and if a Sikh wishes to be married according to Hindu rites there is nothing to prevent him from so doing provided there is no caste barrier to the union. With marriage in the Anand form we are however not concerned here. We have been invited to consider the outlines of religious movements amongst the Sikhs for the purpose of deter, mining whether the petitioner upon his own profession can be deemed to belong to a community which, though they are Sikhs have never really abjured the essentials of Hindu, ism. The facts of history, it is said, are these: Guru Nanak who founded Sikhism, and was the first of Sikh gurus, broke away not from Hinduism, but from certain features of that religion which he considered objectionable. Nanak and his followers were really dissenters who aspired to establish a reform, ed and purified Hinduism. Nanak preached a monotheism similar to that of Hinduism in Vedic times. He disapproved of caste, preached against idolatry and condemned the veneration of saints, pilgrimages, and worship at shrines. Even so caste was not altogether abolished, some Brahminieal rites continued to be observed, and Brahmin priests were employed for the performance of those rites. One of Guru Nanak's sons Sri Chand in fact founded a monkish order known as the Udasi order which was a reversion to the Hindu religious type. It was not until the time of the tenth and last Guru, Govind Singh, that a fundamental cleavage from Hinduism was attempted. Gobind Singh sought to establish a military and political community which in religious matter, would be self-contained, and independent of Hinduism. Admission to this community was by a formal ceremony of initiation called the Pakul or Amrit Soka. All persons so initiated were to be known as Singhs, and were to keep on their persons the five "kakas," viz., Kes (longhair) khanga (a comb) kara (a bangle) kripan (a short sword) and kach (shorts). Govind Singh abolished caste altogether and admitted even untouchables as Singhs. He also did away with the Hindu rites such as Kiria and Sradh, prohibited worship of shrines and samadhs and rejected the Hindu religious books, the Vedas, Purans and Shastras. The strict followers of Guru Gobind Singh, known also as the Akalis, declared that they were not Hindus. But great numbers of Sikhs remained, and were also called Singhs, who did not follow all the precepts of Guru Gobind. The Sahijdharis, for instance, continued to worship Hindu idols, to observe Brahminical rites, and to perpetuate caste. On behalf of the petitioner here, it is stated that he is such a Sahijdhari Sikh. A wealth of historical writing has been cited to illustrate and support the brief account just set out. It is unnecessary to refer to this literature at length, but I would reproduce here a few passages culled from well-known authorities. In his "Evolution of the Khalsa," Vol. 1 at p. 143, Mr. Indu Bhusan Banerjee says: Sikhism, no doubt, had its start in a protest but it was a protest against conventionalism and not against Hinduism. In Nanak, perhaps, the reaction reached its limits and therefore gave a poignant tone to many of his utterances which at first sight give the impression that his was a destructive and revolutionary ideal. But there is no satisfactory evidence that he wanted to overturn the social order.