MODULE 1[B]: ESSENTIALS OF VALID

HINDU MARRIAGE
Marriage as per the Hindu religion is a sacrament as well as a contract. Once the marriage is
completed between a husband and a wife, it confers on them certain rights and duties to be
fulfilled. Section 5 of The Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 lists the conditions that are essential
for a Hindu marriage to be valid.

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The following conditions are necessary for a valid Hindu Marriage.

Monogamous Relationship

One of the first conditions for a valid Hindu Marriage is that, none of the people getting
married should have spouses living at the time of their marriage. Bigamy is an offence under

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the Hindu Law as per Section 491 of the IPC[1], as well as being in violation of Article 14,
15 and 25(1) of the Constitution.[2]

Free Consent

For a marriage to be valid it is imperative that the parties are capable of giving their free
consent to marriage. The consent has to be free in terms of sound mind, mental disorder and
insanity. If free consent is not present, the marriage is voidable as per Section 12 (1)(b) of the
Hindu Marriage Act[3].

Age

It is essential for the male to be a minimum of 21 years in age and the female to be a
minimum of 18 years of age at the time of their marriage. In case this condition is not
fulfilled, the marriage is not void or voidable, however this action may be punishable with
fine or imprisonment or both under Section 18(a) of the Act.

Prohibited Relationship

Two people are in a prohibited relationship if one of them is the ascendant or descendant of
the other. A daughter for instance cannot marry her grandfather or father, nor can a mother
marry her grandson or her son. One can also not marry the wife or husband of a descendant
or ascendant, i.e. a son cannot marry his own stepmother nor can a person marry their son in
law or their daughter in law. Parties that come under prohibited relation cannot marry each
other until justified by usage and custom. A marriage within prohibited relationship, is void
as per Section 11 of the Act, and will only be considered valid if there exists a valid custom
as per Section 3(a) of the Hindu Marriage Act.[4]

Sapinda Relationship

Two people having common ancestors till the 3rd generation from mothers side, i.e. including
the 3rd generation and the 5th generation from the father’s side, including the 5th generation

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are in Sapinda relationship. Marriages between people having Sapinda relationships are
prohibited until and unless allowed by usage or custom. If done, such a marriage is void.

There exist some other conditions in HMA along with these

Section 7 talks about solemnization of marriage with the rites and customary ceremonies.
Section 8 talks about registration of the marriage within 15 days and Section 12(c) about free
consent of petitioners or their parents are necessary.

Movies and television shows show marriages in a glamorized form and have led us to believe
that taking the customary 7 pheras or ‘saptpadi’ make a marriage a valid marriage. Looking at
the validity of a marriage in reference to the 7 pheras, the question that comes to mind is
whether a marriage is valid without it. The answer to this question is yes, the marriage would
be considered as valid if it was conducted as per the rites and ceremonies of either side with
their consent.[5]

[1] Indian Penal Code.

[2]Gogireddy Sambireddyv. Gogireddy Jayamma, AIR 1972 AP 156.

[3]R. Lakshmi Narayan v. Santhi, AIR 2001 SC 21 10.

[4] Shakuntala Devi v Amar Nath AIR 1982 P H 221.

[5] S. Nagalingam v Shivagami, 2001 7 SCC 487.

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