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Article Published in the Express Magazine Dated
August 05,
2001
General Attorney : Rajiv K. Luthra
I intend to marry a Buddhist Tibetan lady who
is a resident of Dharamsala / HP, since 10 years.
I am Buddhist Swiss citizen living in Switzerland.
We would like to marry in India. Where and how can
we get married in India? What documents are
required for the contraction of marriage?
Alan
You can marry anywhere in India, as there are no
restrictions on the place of marriage in the
country. You may marry under the provisions of the
Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, ("Act"), as it applies
to any person who is a Hindu, Buddhist, Jain or
Sikh by religion, irrespective of domicile,
citizenship and/or residence. Under the Act, the
marriage may be solemnised in accordance with the
customary rites and ceremonies of either party and
must fulfill the conditions of Section 5 of the
Act. No documents are required for the marriage.
You would require them if the marriage is
registered, which is advisable in your case as it
shall facilitate proof of a Hindu Marriage. It may
be pointed out that the validity of a Hindu
marriage shall not be affected by registration.
The rules for the registration as well as for
certification of the Hindu Marriage vary from
State to State. In Delhi, the following documents
are required to be annexed for registration:
documentary evidence of date of birth of both the
parties; a copy of the ration card of at least one
party; two passport size photographs of both the
parties and one marriage photograph (all
photographs need to be attested by a Gazetted
Officer) and a marriage invitation card, if
available. Both parties have to furnish separate
affidavits stating the date and place of marriage,
date of birth, citizenship, marital status at the
time of marriage and an affirmation that the
parties are not related to each other within the
prohibited degree of relationship as per the Act.
If any party is a divorcee or widow/widower then
an attested copy of divorce decree/order or death
certificate of spouse, (as applicable), shall be
required to be annexed.
Foreign nationals require to submit a certificate
from the concerned Embassy regarding his/ her
present marital status and in case one of the
parties belongs to other than Hindu, Buddhist,
Jain and Sikh religions, a conversion certificate
from the priest who solemnized the marriage would
be required. If the marriage has been solemnized
at a religious place, a certificate from the
priest is also required.
We often find that even though an accused has
confessed of having committed a crime to another
person, the courts do not use such confession as
evidence against him? Why is that so and what
reason can there possibly be to protect an accused
who has confessed his crime?
Malini Singh, Bangalore
Evidence by way of confessions, is looked upon
with suspicion by courts. Confessions can be
judicial or extra-judicial. While judicial
confessions are those which are made before the
judge or court or in due course of judicial
proceedings, extra-judicial confessions are those
which are voluntary confessions of guilt made by
an accused, of a crime in the course of a
conversation with persons other than the
aforesaid. The nature of confession as in the
query falls within the category of extra judicial
confessions.
An extra judicial confession is often looked upon
as a weak piece of evidence. It is looked upon
with suspicion only in order to safeguard an
accused, who may have made a particular statement
under coercion or inducement of any kind. An
unambiguous extra-judicial confession possesses
high probative value force as it emanates from the
person who committed the crime. However, an
extra-judicial confession must be judged in the
background of attending circumstances and it must
be considered if the same is voluntary and free of
suspicion. There should be cogent evidence on
record about the attending circumstances as well
as the exact words used by the accused to judge
whether the extra-judicial confession is not only
true but also voluntary. If the Court believes the
witness before whom the confession is made and is
satisfied that it is true and made voluntarily,
then conviction can be founded on such evidence
alone.
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