The story so far: Affirming the fundamental right to choose one’s life partner, the Supreme Court on August 28 held that ‘self-respect’ marriages or ‘suyamariyathai’ under Section 7(A) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, do not need public solemnisation or declarations, setting aside a May 2023 Madras High Court judgement.
The Court also observed that advocates, as officers of the court, should abstain from undertaking or volunteering to solemnise such ‘self-respect marriages’ in their professional capacities— however, they are free to stand as witnesses for marriages in their personal capacity as friends or relatives.
In doing so, a Bench comprising Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and Aravind Kumar overruled the 2014 judgment of the Madras High Court in S. Balakrishnan Pandiyan v. Inspector of Police, which held that marriages performed by advocates are not valid and that such self-respect marriages cannot be solemnised in secrecy.
