Tamil Nadu Registration of Marriages Act, 2009
Tamil Nadu Registration of Marriages Act, 2009.html
A Bill to provide for compulsory registration of all marriages in the State
of Tamil Nadu and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Tamil Nadu in the Sixtieth
Year of Republic of India as follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Tamil Nadu Registration of Marriages Act, 2009.—
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Tamil Nadu.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by
notification, 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;
(b) “Government” means the State Government;
(c) “marriage” includes all marriages performed by 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 remarriage;
(d) “memorandum” means a memorandum of marriage referred to in section 5;
(e) “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;
(f) “Registrar” means a Registrar of Marriages appointed under sub-section (3)
of section 4;
(g) “Registrar-General” means the Registrar-General of Marriages appointed
under sub-section (1) of section 4;
(h) “State” means the State of Tamil Nadu.
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 State of Tamil Nadu.
(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.
(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.
Short title extent and commencement.
Central Act XXV of 1955.
Marriages to be compulsorily registered.
Appointment of Registrar-General, District Registrar and Reistrar of Marriages.
Definitions
TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY 73
5. (1) The parties to a marriage shall prepare a memorandum in such Form as
may be prescribed in duplicate 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 performed
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 sixty 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 witnesses and shall be accompanied by such fee 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,—
(a) the marriage between the parties is not performed 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 performance of the marriage is not established beyond
reasonable doubt; or
(c) 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:
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 register the
marriage or confirm the order of the Registrar.
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 a certificate of
registration of marriage to the parties 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 register.
Memorandum of marriage.
Signature on memorandum and fees to be paid.
Power to refuse registration of marriage.
Appeal to District Registrar.
Appeal against the order under section 8.
Issue of cerfiicate and maintaining registrar.
74 TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY
11 (1) Subject to any rules made in this behalf by the Government 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.
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
(c) contravenes any of the provisions of this Act, or rules made thereunder,
shall, on conviction, be punished with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees.
(2) The Registrar who willfully fails to file the memorandum pursuant to section
5 shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to
three months or with fine which may extend 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 to ten thousand
rupees or with both.
16. No prosecution for an offence punishable under this Act shall be instituted except
by an officer authorized 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.
Search of marriage registrar.
Penalty for secreting, destroying or altering register.
Sanction for prosecution.
Offences by companies.
Register to be open for public inspection.
Responsibility of employer, etc. of verification of marriage registration certificate.
Penalties
TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY 75
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
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 publish in the Tamil Nadu Government 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 performed in this State 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 Tamil Nadu
Government 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.
(b) All notifications issued under this Act shall be published in the Tamil Nadu
Government 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 or order made or notification issued under this Act shall, as soon
as possible, after it is made or issued, be’ placed on the Table of the Legislative Assembly,
and if, before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or in the next session, the
Legislative Assembly makes any modification in any such rule, order or notification or the
Legislative Assembly decides that the rule, order or notification should not be made or
issued, the rule, order or notification 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, order or notification.
Protection of action taken in good faith.
Registrar, etc. to be Public servant.
Power to remove difficulties.
Power of Government to give direction.
Operation of other laws not affected Nonregisteration not to invalidate marriage.
Power to make rules.
Central Act XLV of 1860.
76 TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
The Bill provides for appointment of Registrars and Registrar General.
The Bill when enacted would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of the
State. It is however not possible at this stage to estimate wlth any degree of accuracy,
the expenditure to be incurred per annum as a result of the proposed legislation.
.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clauses 1(3), 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 20, 21 and 24 of the Bill empower the Government to issue
notifications and directions or to pass orders or to make rules, as the case may be, for the
purposes specified therein.
2. The powers delegated are normal and not of an exceptional character.
TAMIL NADU GOVERNMENT GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY 77 STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Supreme Court, in its order in Seema vs Ashwani Kumar AIR 2006 SC 1158 has
observed that the effect of non-registration would be that the presumption which is
available from registration of marriage would be denied to a person whose marriage is
not registered. The Supreme Court of India is of the view that marriages of all persons
who are citizens of India belonging to various religions should be made compulsorily
registrable in the respective States, where the marriage is solemnized.
2. Therefore, in order to provide for the compulsory registration of all marriages of all
persons who are the citizens of India belonging to various religions in the State, it is considered
necessary to make a new law to ensure effective implementation of the compulsory registration
of the marriages in this State. Accordingly, the Government have decided to undertake
legislation for the purpose.
3. The Bill seeks to give effect to the above decision.
DURAl MURUGAN,
Minister for Public Works and Law.
M. SELVARAJ,
Secretary
