A notice was issued by the Supreme Court on Monday, 4 April, staying the order of Madhya Pradesh High Court, directing an Arya Samaj organisation that it must comply with the provisions of the Special Marriage Act (SMA), 1954. The court accepted the view that the Arya Samaj weddings solemnised under Arya Samaj tradition do not need registration under the act.
A plea was filed by the Madhya Bharat Arya Pratinidhi Sabha, which questioned a 2020 HC order that had directed it to amend its guidelines for registration of Arya Samaj weddings in line with the SMA. The Sabha said that with respect to Arya Samaj marriage, the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA), 1955 and the Arya Marriage Validation Act (AMA), 1937 hold the field.
Senior Advocate Shyam Divan and lawyer Vanshaja Shukla, representing the Madhya Bharat Arya Pratinidhi Sabha, in the court, contended that the high court committed an error by transgressing into the domain of legislature.
“The high court committed an error by transgressing into the domain of legislature by directing that Arya Samaj marriages conducted by the Arya Samaj temples, under the jurisdiction of the petitioner society in MP, will have to solemnised in consonance of the provisions of the Special Marriage Act.”
A runaway inter-caste couple had filed a petition before the HC in the year 2020, stating that they got married according to the Arya Samaj tradition and approached the court seeking direction to the state to grant them protection. The Sabha, denied the claims of the couple and said that the organisation that helped them get married was not linked to the Arya Samaj Sabha.
A single bench judge at the high court in December 2020, issued specific directions to the Sabha to amend its guidelines to incorporate sections 5,6,7 and 8 of the Special Marriage Act, within a month.
A bench of Justices KM Joseph and Hrishikesh Roy, stayed the Madhya Pradesh High Court order , which directed the organisation to amend its guidelines in accordance with the Act. The court also issued notice to the Madhya Pradesh government regarding the same.