subsisting ought to be a bar to a marriage under Parsi law, exactly as it would be to a Christian marriage or one under the Special Marriage Act, and there is little doubt that a Court would take the same view even at present under the general law. The alteration puts the matter beyond doubt.
5. Punishment of bigamy.—Every Parsi who during the lifetime of his or
her wife or husband, whether a Parsi or not, contracts a marriage without
having been lawfully divorced from such wife or husband, or without his or
her marriage with such wife or husband having legally been declared null and
void or dissolved, shall be subject to the penalties provided in sections 494 and
495 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) for the offence of marrying again
during the lifetime of a husband or wife.
COMMENTS
Sections 494 and 495 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) are as follows:—
494. Marrying again during lifetime of husband or wife.—Whoever, having a husband or wife living, marries in any case in which such marriage is void by reason of its taking place during the life of such husband or wife, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Exception.—This section does not extend to any person whose marriage with such husband or wife has been declared void by a Court of competent jurisdiction,
nor to any person who contracts a marriage during the life of a former husband or wife, if such husband or wife, at the time of the subsequent marriage, shall have been continually absent from such person for the space of seven years, and shall not have been heard of by such person as being alive within that time provided the person contracting such subsequent marriage shall, before such marriage takes place, inform the person with whom such marriage is contracted of the real state of facts so far as the same are within his or her knowledge.
495. Same offence with concealment of former marriage from person with whom subsequent marriage is contracted.—Whoever commits the offence defined in the last preceding section having concealed from the person with whom the subsequent marriage is contracted, the fact of the former marriage, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
6. Certificate and registry of marriage.—Every marriage contracted under this Act shall, immediately on the solemnization thereof, be certified by the officiating priest in the form contained in Schedule II. The certificate shall be signed by the said priest, the contracting parties 9[* * *] and two witnesses present at the marriage; and the said priest shall thereupon send such certificate together with a fee of two rupees to be paid by the husband to the Registrar of the place at which such marriage is solemnized. The Registrar on receipt of the certificate and fee shall enter the certificate in a register to be kept by him for that purpose and shall be entitled to retain the fee.
7. Appointment of Registrar.—For the purposes of this Act a Registrar shall be appointed. Within the local limits of the ordinary original civil jurisdiction of a High Court, the Registrar shall be appointed by the Chief Justice of such Court, and without such limits, by the State Government. Every Registrar so appointed may be removed by the Chief Justice or State Government appointing him.
8. Marriage register to be open for public inspection.—The register of marriage mentioned in section 6 shall, at all reasonable times, be open for
9. The words “or their fathers ‘or guardians when they shall not have completed the age of twenty-one years,” omitted by Act 5 of 1988, S. 3 (w.e.f. 15-4-1988).
inspection, and certified extracts therefrom shall, on application, be given by the Registrar on payment to him by the applicant of two rupees for each such extract. Every such register shall be evidence of the truth of the statements therein contained.
9. Copy of certificate to be sent to Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages.—Every Registrar, except the Registrar appointed by the Chief Justice of the High Court of judicature at Bombay, shall, at such intervals as the State Government by which he was appointed from time to time directs, send to the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages for the territories administered by such State Government, a true copy certified by him in such form as such State Government from time to time prescribes, of all certificates entered by him in the said register of marriages since the last of such intervals.
10. Registration of divorces.—When a Court passes a decree for divorce, nullity or dissolution, the Court shall send a copy of the decree for registration to the Registrar of Marriages within its jurisdiction appointed under section 7; the Registrar shall enter the same in a register to be kept by him for the purpose, and the provisions of Part II applicable to the Registrars and registers of marriages shall be applicable) so far as may be, to the Registrars and registers of divorces and decrees of nullity and dissolution.
11. Penalty for solemnizing marriage contrary to section 4.—Any priest knowingly and wilfully solemnizing any marriage contrary to and in violation of section 4 shall, on conviction thereof, be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to two hundred rupees, or with both.
12. Penalty for priest’s neglect of requirements of section 6.—Any priest neglecting to comply with any of the requisitions affecting him contained’.in section 6 shall, on conviction thereof, be punished for every such offence with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months, or with fine which may extend to one hundred rupees, or with both.
13. Penalty for omitting to subscribe and attest certificate.—Every other person required by section 6 to subscribe or attest the said certificate who shall wilfully omit or neglect so to do, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished for every such offence with a fine not exceeding one hundred rupees.
14. Penalty for making, etc., false certificate.—Every person making or signing or attesting any such certificate containing a statement which -is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months, or with fine which may extend to one hundred rupees, or with both; and if the act amounts to forgery as defined in the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860), then such person shall also be liable, on conviction thereof, to the penalties provided in section 466 of the said Code.
Objects and Reasons—Clause 14.—This corresponds to the present section 12 (of the Act 1865). The latter makes all the signatories guilty of forgery if any the slightest detail,
whether material or not be incorrect, e.g., if the age of a party be given at 35 instead of 37.
The use of the words “does not know to be true” makes even a person acting in good faith
on information apparently reliable guilty if his information happens to be incorrect. The
alteration is intended to remedy these defects.
15. Penalty for failing to register certificate.—Any Registrar failing to enter the said certificate pursuant to section 6 shall be punished with simple
imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
16. Penalty for secreting, destroying or altering register.—Any person secreting, destroying, or dishonestly or fraudulently altering the said register in any part thereof, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description as defined in the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) for a term which may extend to two years, or if he be a Registrar, for a term which may extend to five years and shall also be liable to fine which may extend to five hundred rupees.
17. Formal irregularity not to invalidate marriage.—No marriage contracted under this Act shall be deemed to be invalid solely by reason of the fact that it was not certified under section 6, or that the certificate was not sent to the Registrar, or that the certificate was defective, irregular or incorrect.
Objects and Reasons—Clause 17.—This new clause lays down general principles on
which most District Judges would act and have acted. (See Peshottam v. Meharbai, I.L.R. 13
Vom.302andAvabaiv.Khodabad,l.L.RA5Bom. 146)
