Certificates issued by Arya Samaj Societies do not prove legality of marriage: Allahabad HC

Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has observed that certificates issued by Arya Samaj Societies alone do not prove the legality of a marriage, saying the wedding should also be registered.

While dealing with a habeas corpus petition, Justice Saurabh Shyam Shamshery said, "The court has been flooded with the marriage certificates issued by different Arya Samaj Societies which have been seriously questioned during different proceedings before this court as well as by other high courts.” "The said institution has misused their beliefs in organizing the marriages without even considering the genuineness of documents," the court further observed.

In the present case, a habeas corpus petition was filed by one Bhola Singh alleging that corpus (petitioner number 2) is wife of petitioner and in order to prove that they were legally married, counsel for petitioners had placed reliance upon a certificate issued by Arya Samaj Mandir, Ghaziabad.

"Since the marriage has not been registered, therefore, only on the basis of said certificate it cannot be deemed that the parties have married," the court observed.

"In the present case, the corpus is a major and an FIR has been lodged against the petitioner by father of petitioner No. 2 corpus and investigation is undergoing, therefore, there is no case of illegal detention," the court observed and dismissed the petition on August 31.