The Correction

Context: The recent Allahabad High Court (HC) judgment rings a caution against state intrusion on personal life.

Background: The HC struck down provisions of the Special Marriages Act, 1954 that make it mandatory for couples to publish a 30-day public notice of their intent to marry.

Significance of the HC’s judgement:

• Upholds the fundamental rights provided by the Constitution of India: Freedom to choose for marriage is part of fundamental rights of liberty and privacy. The Supreme Court has upheld the rights through -
  • Puttawamy v Union of India: recognized privacy as a fundamental right.
  • The right to choose one’s partner (Hadiya case) and by decriminalizing homosexuality.
• Helps to check outside interference: The removed provisions exposed the marrying couples to vigilantes and familial violence.
• In line with the recommendation of Law Commission: To “keep a check on the high-handed and unwarranted interference by caste assemblies in sagotra, inter-caste or inter-religious marriages”.
• Realizes the genuine intent of the law: which was to clear a space for Indian citizens to marry outside the boundaries of religious and caste identity. (to support refashioning of identities)
• The alternative way to marry under personal laws is even more stringent: E.g. Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020, mandates 60-day notice.
• Reaffirms constitutional protection to minorities: As inter-faith unions make up a minuscule minority of marriages. 

Conclusion: In Effect, the Allahabad High Court judgment is a reminder and a warning that the constitution remains the bulwark against an overreaching state.