'Appalling': Delhi High Court Criticizes Non-Compliance Of Supreme Court Order On Compulsory Registration Of Marriages

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday expressed its displeasure at the Union and Delhi Governments over non-compliance of a Supreme Court order directing that all marriages be compulsorily registered, irrespective of faith.

“This is pathetic actually…It is appalling as to how you are not implementing the order of the Supreme Court,” a division bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyay and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela remarked while hearing a PIL on the issue.

The Court directed the Centre and the Delhi Government to comply with the 2006 ruling of the Apex Court in the case of Seema v. Ashwani Kumar.

In the said judgment, the Top Court had directed the State Governments and the Central Government that marriages of all persons belonging to various religious denomination should be compulsorily registered in their respective States where such marriages are solemnized.

Notably, the Delhi government had issued Delhi (Compulsory Registration of Marriage) Order, 2014, for compulsory registration of marriages.

The Court issued notice on a PIL filed by one Aakash Goel seeking preparation of Rules for a “centralised database” of marriage registration.

The Bench directed the concerned Union Ministry and the Delhi Government to look into the matter and take appropriate steps as warranted in law and also to ensure that the Supreme Court directions are complied with.

The Court granted three months' time to both the governments for taking appropriate steps and asked them to file their decisions before July 09, the next date of hearing.

The plea submitted that due to lack of appropriate legislation, the mechanism available for registration of marriages was not only inadequate but it also did not fulfil the object of compulsory registration of marriages.

A direction has been sought upon the Centre to maintain the centralised database and make it available in advance to citizens so that correct whereabouts of families were known while giving a go ahead for a wedding.

The plea further seeks a direction for modifying certain clauses of the Delhi Compulsory Registration of Marriages Order, 2014, to allow online registration of marriages with virtual presence of a married couple and witness before the authorities concerned.

In November last year, a single judge had directed Delhi Government's Chief Secretary to ensure that marriages solemnized under the Muslim personal law are registered online as mandated by the Delhi (Compulsory Registration of Marriage) Order, 2014.

The Court had directed the Chief Secretary to personally look into the issue and ensure compliance of a judgment passed on July 04, 2024, directing the Delhi Government to immediately take steps to enable registration of Muslim marriages on the government online portal.

Case Title: Aakash Goel v. UOI & Ors.