Analysis of Parsi marriage and divorce act

 PARSI MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE ACT

Marriage is stated to be a universal social institution, and it was founded with the goal of regulating and controlling human life and conduct. The right to marry is protected by Article 21 of the Indian constitution, which stipulates that every person of the nation has the right to life as a basic right. In India, marriages differ from one faith to the next and from one location to the next, with each religion having its own set of unique rules defining the sacredness of marriage. 

PARSI LAW

The Parsi Marriage and Divorce (Amendment) Act, 1988, under Section 32B, regulates and monitors Parsi marriage and divorce legislation. This statute contains a number of laws that govern Parsi marriage and divorce. Section 34 of the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936 guarantees judicial separation, and the grounds for both judicial and divorce marital reliefs are similarly aligned.

PARSI MARRIAGE

Marriage is seen as a contract by Parsis, but the religious ritual of 'Ashirvad' is regarded as a necessary condition for confirming and preserving its legitimacy. It was established in the case of Parshottam v. Meherbai that Ashirvad, which meaning benediction, is required to show the legality of a marriage. In addition, the court determined that it refers to an exhortation or prayer spoken by the couples before to the marital inspections. 

Another key feature is Jewish marriage, which is similarly thought to be a contract and is recognised by a written contract known as Katuba signed by the parties to the marriage. Religious rites should also be observed in order to recognise the marriage. A marriage, according to the Special Marriage Act of 1954, is a civil contract. According to the same, a marriage can be declared void if one or both spouses are under the age of 18.

CEREMONIES OF PARSI MARRIAGE UNDER PARSI LAW

Every group in India has its own set of regulated marriage procedures and celebrations, which range from community to community. It has been observed that some cultures, such as the Hindus, have a highly complex and lengthy marriage ritual, whereas the Muslim community has a very quick and basic marriage ceremony. In certain tribes, marriage rites and ceremonies are not even necessary; simply cohabitation between individuals is sufficient to ratify and form a marriage.

Under Parsi law, an Ashirvad religious ceremony must be performed by a Parsi priest in the presence of two Parsi witnesses in order to recognise a marriage, and its registration is also necessary to establish the sacrament of marriage. On the solemnization of marriage, the officiating priest must promptly register and certify the marriage in the required form, according to Parsi law. The priest, the two witnesses present, and the participants to the marriage must all sign this document. Following the certification, the priest must send it to the office of the registrar at whose location the marriage was solemnised, together with a cost of two rupees, and the registrar adds it into his certificate record.

Furthermore, failure to register a marriage does not invalidate it, and the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Acts, 1936-88, provide that weddings cannot be declared void simply because the priest did not certify it or because the certificate was irregular, inaccurate, or faulty.

REGISTRATION OF PARSI MARRIAGE

Marriages are registered under the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act of 1865 and the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act of 1936. The appointment of a Marriage Registrar, as well as the powers connected with such an appointment and how he can be dismissed under both the state government and the Chief Justices of the High Courts, is outlined in Section 7 of this act. Furthermore, the state government can appoint registrars without specifying their local boundaries or jurisdiction, whereas chief justices must specify their jurisdiction and can only appoint for local limits. According to Section 9 of the same statute, a priest must transmit a copy of the marriage certificate to the registrar, failing which he is liable to a fine of rupees hundred.

After that, the registrar must register the marriage in the marriage register book, and while the act makes it mandatory for a Parsi marriage to be registered, the basis of prolonged cohabitation would arise under Section 114 of the Indian Evidence Act, and this would be applicable to the particular act because the evidence act applies to all personal laws in India. Because the marriage register is a public record, as defined by Section 8 of the act, it can be inspected by anybody. The Parsi marriage registrar differs from the marriage registrar under the Deaths, Births, and Marriages Registration Act, 1886, in that the priest is required to send a copy of the marriage certificate to the marriage registrar at the time of the solemnization and then to send copies of marriage registration to the registrar-general on a regular basis.

PRIEST’S NEGLECT OF REQUIREMENT

This is addressed by Section 12 of the aforementioned legislation, which also states that any priest who neglects or fails to comply with the fundamentals of Section 6 would be convicted and punished for the infraction with a simple sentence of three months' imprisonment or a fine of one hundred rupees, or both.

We may deduce from the foregoing that Parsi marriage and divorce can be categorised as codified personal laws, each with its own set of perks and drawbacks. Both the laws on marriage and divorce have some excellent features that have been implemented and regulated with utmost care, which help to distinguish this personal law from other existent laws; however, there are many discrepancies in the act as well as the concepts of Parsi law that need to be improvised and made more adaptable and futuristic, and not limited to not only those who are not members of the Parsi community. 

To summarise, Parsi law is fairly thorough and sanitised on the one hand, but there are many modulations and adjustments that need to be brought up and executed in order to draw parallels and be on par with other personal laws on the other hand. Parsi law possesses the necessary light and beam to effect change, but it lacks the necessary direction to show itself, compete, and take a position.