[ 61 ]

GOVERNMENT OF PUDUCHERRY

LAW DEPARTMENT

No. 179/Leg./2011/LD.

Puducherry, the 24th February 2012.

NOTIFICATION

Whereas, in Transfer Petition (C) No. 291 of 2005 Smt. Seema Vs.

Ashwani Kumar on the file of the Supreme Court, directions have been

issued to all States and Union Territories to the effect that marriage of

all persons who are citizens of India belonging to various religions

should be made compulsorily registrable in the respective States/Union

Territories, where the marriage is solemnised;

Registered with the Registrar

of Newspapers for India under

No. M. 8270

Registered No.

TN/PMG(CCR)/42/2012-14

WPP No. 88(556)

Dated : 24-2-2012

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No.

9 Poudouchéry Vendredi

Février

2012

No.

Puducherry

Friday

24th

February 2012

(5 Phalguna 1933)

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

[PART–II

DRAFT

THE PUDUCHERRY REGISTRATION OF

MARRIAGES BILL

BILL

to provide for compulsory registration of all marriages

in the Union territory of Puducherry and for matters

connected therewith or incidental thereto.

1. (1) This Act may be called the Puducherry

Registration of Marriages Act.

(2) It extends to the whole of the Union territory

of Puducherry.

(3) It shall come into force on such date as the

Government may, by notification in the official

gazette, appoint.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

(a) “District Registrar” means a District Registrar

of Marriages appointed under sub-section (2) of

section 4;

Short title,

extent and

commencement.

And whereas, in pursuance of the above, the Supreme Court has further

directed that necessary legislation be made to provide for such compulsory

registration of marriages after giving due publicity and that the matter shall

be kept open for objection for a period of one month from the date of

advertisement inviting objections;

Now, therefore, for the above purpose, the draft of the “Puducherry

Registration of Marriages Bill” prepared is hereby pre-published in the

official gazette inviting objections from all persons interested therein;

Any objection or suggestion which may be received from any person in

respect of the said draft legislation will be considered. The objections or

suggestions in this behalf may be addressed to the Secretary to Government,

Law Department, Chief Secretariat Buildings, Pondicherry – 605 001 within

one month from the date of publication of this notification.

Definitions.

PART–II]

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

(b) “Government” means the Administrator of the

Union territory of Puducherry appointed by the

President under article 239 of the Constitution;

between persons belonging to any caste or religion

under any law for the time being in force, or as per any

custom or usage in any form or manner and also includes

re-marriage;

(d) “memorandum” means a memorandum of

marriage referred to in section 5;

(e) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made

under the Act;

(f) “priest” means any person who performs a

marriage or any person present in the marriage referred

to in section 7-A of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955;

(g) “Registrar” means a Registrar of Marriages

appointed under sub-section (3) of section 4;

(h) “Registrar-General” means the Registrar-General

of Marriages appointed under sub-section (1)

of section 4;

(i) “Union Territory” means the Union territory

of Puducherry.

3. Every marriage performed on and from the date of

commencement of this Act shall be registered under this Act

notwithstanding the fact that the said marriage had been

entered in the marriage registers governed by any other

personal laws of the parties to the marriage or custom or

usage or tradition.

4. (1) The Government shall, by notification, appoint

a person to be the Registrar-General of Marriages for the

Union Territory.

(2) The Government shall, by notification, appoint

a person to be the District Registrar of Marriages for each

District for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

Central

Act

25 of

1955.

Marriages to be

compulsorily

registered.

Appointment of

Registrar-General,

District

Registrar and

Registrar of

Marriages.

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

[PART–II

(3) The Government shall, by notification, appoint

such number of persons as it thinks necessary, to be the

Registrar of Marriages for such local areas as may be

specified in the notification, and one or more Registrars

may be appointed for one or more such areas for carrying

out the purposes of this Act.

(4) Every District Registrar and Registrar shall

exercise such powers and perform such duties as may be

prescribed and shall be under the general supervision and

control of the Registrar-General.

5. (1) The parties to a marriage shall prepare a

memorandum in such Form as may be prescribed and shall

deliver it in person or send in the manner as may be

prescribed to the Registrar of the area where the marriage

is solemnised or within whose jurisdiction either or both

parties to the marriage have their permanent place of

residence, within ninety days from the date of the marriage:

Provided that the memorandum may be delivered or

sent to the Registrar within a further period of ninety days

after the expiry of the said ninety days with the payment

of additional fee as may be prescribed.

(2) Nothing in the proviso to sub-section (1) shall

affect the liability of any person to any penalty under

clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 14.

6. Every memorandum referred to in section 5 shall

be signed by the parties to the marriage and by the priest

and two other persons who witnessed the marriage and

shall be accompanied by such fees and documents viz.,

certificate of priest who performed the marriage, certificate

of marriage issued by the religious authority concerned,

documents to show the age and residence of parties to the

marriage, place of marriage etc., as may be prescribed.

7. (1) Where the Registrar, before whom the

memorandum is delivered or sent under section 5 on

scrutiny of the documents filed with the memorandum or,

on the other facts noticed or brought to his notice, is

satisfied or has reason to believe that,—

Memorandum

of marriage.

Signature on

memorandum

and fees to

be paid.

Power to refuse

registration of

marriage.

PART–II]

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

(a) the marriage between the parties is not

solemnised in accordance with the personal laws of

the parties, or any custom or usage or tradition; or

(b) the identity of the parties or the witnesses or

the persons testifying the identity of the parties and

the solemnisation of the marriage is not established

beyond reasonable doubt; or

years as on the date of solemnisation of marriage; or

(d) the husband has not completed the age of

twenty-one years as on the date of solemnisation of

marriage; or

(e) the documents tendered before him do not

prove the marital status of the parties,

he may, after hearing the parties and recording the reasons

in writing, refuse to register the marriage and may,—

(i) call upon the parties to produce such further

information or documents as deemed necessary, for

establishing the identity of the parties and the witnesses

or correctness of the information or documents presented

to him, or

(ii) if deemed necessary, also refer the papers to the

local police station within whose jurisdiction the parties

reside, for verification.

(2) Where, on further verification as provided in

sub-section (1), the Registrar is satisfied that there is no

objection to register the marriage, he may register the same.

If in the opinion of the Registrar, the marriage is not fit for

registration, he may pass an order of refusal in writing,

recording the reasons therefor.

8. (1) Any person aggrieved by the order of the

Registrar under section 7 may, within a period of thirty

days from the date of receipt of such order, appeal to the

District Registrar in such manner as may be prescribed:

Appeal to District

Registrar.

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

[PART–II

Provided that the District Registrar may, within a

further period of thirty days, admit an appeal presented

after the expiration of the first mentioned period of thirty

days, if he is satisfied that the appellant had sufficient

cause for not presenting the appeal within the first

mentioned period.

(2) The District Registrar, after giving an

opportunity of being heard to the party affected and after

recording the reasons in writing, direct the Registrar to

9. Any person aggrieved by the order of the

District Registrar made under section 8 may, within a period

of thirty days from the date of receipt of the order, appeal

against such order to the Registrar-General and the

decision of the Registrar-General on such appeal shall be

final and thereupon the Registrar shall act in conformity

with such decision.

10. (1) On registration of the marriage, the Registrar

shall issue certificates of registration to the both parties

to the marriage in such form as may be prescribed.

(2) Every Registrar shall maintain a register of

marriages, in such form and in such manner as may be

prescribed.

(3) On receipt of the memorandum of marriage

under section 5, the Registrar shall file the same in the

11. (1) Subject to any rules as may be prescribed

including the rules relating to payment of fee, any person

may,—

(a) cause a search to be made by the Registrar

for any entry in the register of marriages; and

(b) obtain an extract from such register relating

to marriages.

(2) All extracts given under this section shall be

certified by the Registrar and shall be admissible in

evidence for the purpose of proving the marriage to which

the entry relates.

Appeal against

the order under

section 8.

Issue of

certificate and

maintaining

Search of

marriage by the

Registrar.

PART–II]

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

12. The register of marriages shall, at all reasonable

times, be open to inspection and the certified extracts

therefrom shall, on application, be given by the Registrar

to the applicant on payment of such fee as may be

prescribed.

13. No employer or a Government or quasi-

Government Authority or Company or Public Sector

Undertaking or Local Authority shall carry out any change

in their office record or in any office documents, such as

change in the marital status or change of nomination, of

its employee or in their dealings with any person, customer

or client unless the employee or, as the case may be,

the applicant, applying for carrying out or recording of

such change, submits a certified copy of the certificate of

registration of marriage issued under section 10.

14. (1) Any person who—

(a) omits or neglects to deliver or send the

memorandum as required by section 5; or

(b) makes any statement in the memorandum

which is false in any material particular, and which

he knows or has reason to believe to be false; or

or rules made thereunder;

shall, on conviction, be punished with fine which may

extend up to one thousand rupees.

(2) The Registrar who wilfully fails to file the

memorandum pursuant to section 5 or wilfully fails to

conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term

which may extend to three months or with fine which may

extend up to one thousand rupees or with both.

15. Any person secreting, destroying or dishonestly

or fraudulently altering the register of marriage or any part

thereof shall, on conviction, be punished with

imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or

with fine which may extend up to ten thousand rupees

or with both.

open for public

inspection.

Responsibility

of employer,

etc., of

verification

of marriage

registration

certificate.

Penalties.

Penalty for

secreting,

destroying or

altering register.

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

[PART–II

16. No prosecution for an offence punishable under

this Act shall be instituted except by an officer authorised

by the Registrar-General by general or special order, in

this behalf.

17. (1) If any person committing an offence under

this Act is a company, every person, who, at the time the

offence was committed, was in-charge of, and was

responsible to the company for the conduct of the business

of the company as well as the company, shall be deemed to

be guilty of the offence, and shall be liable to be proceeded

against and punished accordingly:

Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section

shall render any such person liable to any punishment

provided in this Act, if he proves that the offence was

committed without his knowledge, or that he exercised all

due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in

sub-section (1), where an offence under this Act has been

committed by a company and it is proved that the offence

has been committed with the consent or connivance of, or

is attributable to any neglect on the part of any director,

manager, secretary or other officer of the company, such

director, manager, secretary or other officer shall also be

deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to

be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

Explanation.—For the purpose of the section,—

(a) “company” means a body corporate and

includes a firm or other association of individuals;

and

(b) “director” in relation to a firm, means a partner

in the firm.

18. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings

shall lie against any person for anything which is in good

faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act

or a rule or order made thereunder.

Sanction for

prosecution.

Offences by

companies.

Protection of

action taken

in good faith.

PART–II]

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

Registrar, etc.,

to be public

servant.

Power to remove

difficulties.

Power of

Government to

give directions.

Operation of

other laws not

affected.

19. The Registrar-General, every District Registrar

and Registrar and other officers while acting or purporting

to act in pursuance of the provisions of this Act or rules

made thereunder shall be deemed to be a public servant

within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code.

20. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the

provisions of this Act, the Government may, by order

published in the official gazette, make such provisions,

not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear

to them to be necessary or expedient for removing the

difficulties:

Provided that no order shall be made after the expiry

of a period of two years from the date of commencement of

this Act.

21. The Government may, from time to time, issue

such directions not inconsistent with the provisions of

this Act, to the Registrar, District Registrar and to the

Registrar-General, as it may thinks fit for the effective

implementation of the provisions of this Act and they shall

comply with such direction.

22. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition

to, and not in derogation of any other law for the time

being in force.

23. No marriage solemnised in this Union Territory

to which this Act applies shall be deemed to be invalid

solely by reason of the fact that it was not registered under

this Act.

24. (1) The Government may make rules for carrying

out all or any of the purposes of this Act.

(2) (a) All rules made under this Act shall be

published in the official gazette and unless they are

expressed to come into force on a particular day, shall

come into force on the day on which they are so published.

Central

Act

45 of

1860.

Non-registration

not to invalidate

marriage

Power to make

rules.

LA GAZETTE DE L'ETAT

[PART–II

(b) All notifications issued under this Act shall be

published in the official gazette and unless they are

expressed to come into force on a particular day, shall

come into force on the day on which they are so published.

(3) Every rule made under this Act shall, as soon

as possible, after it is made, be laid on the Table of the

Legislative Assembly, and if, before the expiry of

the session in which it is so laid or in the next session,

the Legislative Assembly makes any modification in any

such rule or the Legislative Assembly decides that the

rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have

effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the

case may be, so, however, that any such modification or

annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of

anything previously done under that rule.

SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT (LAW).

————

online publication at “http://styandptg.puducherry.gov.in”

Government Central Press

Directorate of Stationery and Printing

Puducherry-9.