Once a marriage was voluntarily registered under the Kerala Registration of Marriages Rules, the registrar cannot cancel the entry merely because the parties later claim their marriage is invalid, the Court said.
The Kerala High Court recently clarified that marriage registrars are not required to adjudicate disputes concerning the validity of a marriage. Such matters must be brought before a competent civil court for resolution [XXX & Anr. v. State of Kerala & Ors.].
Justice C.S. Dias made this observation while dismissing a joint petition filed by a Muslim man and a Hindu woman seeking cancellation of their registered marriage certificate on the ground that their marriage was invalid.
The Court held that the question of the marriage’s validity was a disputed issue of fact, which falls within the exclusive jurisdiction of a civil court—not the marriage registrar.
The Court noted that the registrar’s role is confined to verifying whether a marriage was, on the face of it, solemnised, and does not extend to determining its legal validity.
“The Registrar does not have the jurisdiction to adjudicate the above disputed question of fact under Rule 13. The questions regarding the validity of the marriage and the marital status of the parties are to be decided by a competent civil court,” it said.
The Court further stated that, having voluntarily affirmed and testified before the local registrar that their marriage was solemnised in accordance with customary rites, the petitioners could not subsequently repudiate the registration.
“Having produced documents … and voluntarily testifying that the marriage was solemnised, the petitioners are estopped from reprobating that there is no valid marriage. The Registrar does not have the jurisdiction to adjudicate the above disputed question of fact under Rule 13 (of the Kerala Registration of Marriages Rules),” the Court said.
The petitioners had briefly lived together in 2014 and, in an effort to avoid legal complications and social stigma, registered their marriage under the Kerala Registration of Marriages (Common) Rules, 2008.
Subsequently, they separated and jointly sought cancellation of their marriage certificate, claiming the marriage was not legally valid as it had not been solemnised under the Special Marriage Act, 1954.
However, the local Registrar rejected their application, noting that there is no provision under the law to cancel a marriage that has been duly registered.
The couple then approached the High Court to challenge the Registrar’s decision.
The Court referred to Rule 13 of the 2008 Rules, which permits cancellation of a marriage certificate only if the entry is proven to be erroneous, fraudulent, or improperly made, and that too with the approval of the Registrar General.
The Court highlighted that, during registration, the Registrar had relied on the petitioners’ own declarations, a memorandum confirming the date and place of the marriage, and a certificate issued by a local self-government official who, along with the petitioners’ witness, had attested to the solemnisation of the marriage.
Citing the precedent established in Pranav A.M. v. Secretary, Engandiyur Grama Panchayat (2018 (3) KHC 128), the Court reaffirmed that the Registrar’s responsibility is limited to being prima facie satisfied that a marriage was solemnised, without delving into its legal validity.
Finding no legal infirmity in the Registrar’s decision to deny cancellation of the marriage certificate, the Court dismissed the petition. However, it clarified that the petitioners are at liberty to approach a civil court should they wish to obtain a formal declaration regarding their marital status.