Family, Marriage & Divorce

Kerala High Court (HC) in Asbi K N v Hashim M U has formulated some guidelines for the Family Court to be followed when any party files a petition seeking its endorsement to an extrajudicial divorce duly concluded under Muslim Personal Law. The judgement was delivered on 12 October 2021. The HC declared the nature of enquiry and trial procedures to be made by the Family Court in such cases. The courts can declare such marital status under Section 7 of the Family Court Act, 1984.

Unilateral withdrawal of consent by the respondent, especially after the appellant has performed his part of the terms in the memorandum of agreement cannot be permitted or tolerated even for a moment, says the High Court of Kerala (HC) in a Matrimonial Appeal relating to Mutual Consent Divorce Such a unilateral withdrawal of consent by the respondent would shatter the faith of the litigants in the justice delivery system and make alternative dispute resolution mechanism a mockery. Such a practice is unsustainable in law.

The High Court of Kerala allowed a lawyer in Kerala and her fiancé in the USA to solemnise their marriage online (on virtual mode) because her fiancé could not travel to India due to travel restrictions, in a case Rintu Thomas v State of Kerala.

When two petitioners, the first of whom is an Indian citizen who belongs to Hindu Community and the other a citizen of Filipina who got converted to Hindu religion as second petitioner, after undergoing sacred marriage ceremonies and rites according to the custom applicable to the community to which the first petitioner belongs held at a temple at Thrissur District and obtaining a certificate issued by the temple authorities evidencing the marriage was solemnized on 13.9.2016, the Marriage Registrar declined to register their marriage under the Kerala Registration of Marriages(Common) Rules, 2008. However, , when the petitioners approached the High Court of Kerala in Pranav AM v The Secretary, Engandiyur Gram Panchayat, the court asked the marriage Registrar to register the marriage under the above rules.

Adoption is a legal process of giving and taking of child to a non-biological parent. It is a process that creates a parent - child relation between persons who are not related by blood. The purpose of adoption is to provide a child, who cannot be cared for by his biological parents, the care of a substitute family. The adoptive family of the child has the responsibility to provide him proper care and protection of a family. An adopted child is entitled to all privileges similar to that of a natural-born child, including the right to inherit, in the new family.

A person belonging to Hindu religion can marry a person belonging to the Hindu religion only Under Hindu marriage Act, 1955 (HMA). The HMA is applicable to persons belonging to the Hindu, Budhist, Jaina, or Sikh religion but not applicable to a Muslim or Christian. But under Special Marriage Act, 1954 (SMA) allows a Hindu person marrying a non-Hindu person such as a Christian or Muslim. It is called as Special Marriage.

Custody of the child turns into a hotly disputed issue in almost every proceeding for divorce or judicial separation. Child custody refers to the process of controlling, caring and maintenance of the child in respect to its education, development, and medical, emotional, & physical wellbeing.

The Supreme Court (SC) in Amardeep Singh v Harveen Kaur [(2017) 8 SCC] examined and decided whether the minimum period of six months stipulated under Section 13B (2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HNA) for a motion for passing decree of divorce on the basis of mutual consent is mandatory or can be relaxed in any exceptional situations.

When a senior citizen approaches a writ court to direct the eviction of his son and daughter-in-law from a shared household, it must be viewed from the prism of Article 21 of the Constitution of India. This is the remark that the Calcutta High Court made on 23rd July 2021 in the case Ramapada Basak & Anr v. State of West Bengal & Ors while deciding a plea by two senior citizens (petitioners) seeking the eviction of the son and daughter-in-law from their residence.

Divorced Hindu spouses, on getting a decree of divorce, can remarry: if the parties have no right to appeal as in the case of mutual consent divorce if the time for right of appeal has expired without the parties filing an appeal or if the court dismissed the appeal filed before it (Section 15 of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 (HMA) Therefore a divorce decree holder, who is eager to marry another person as soon as possible, needs to know when the period for filing ends. One law says its 30 days but another law says it is 90 days. The Supreme Court in 2002 and many High Courts in later years directed the government of India to bring an end to this confusion but nothing has happened.