Marriage registration alone was held insufficient where essential Hindu marriage ceremonies had not been validly performed under law

THE GUJARAT High Court held that the registration of a marriage cannot cure the absence of essential ceremonies required under Hindu personal law. It was observed that the legal validity of a Hindu marriage depends upon the performance of mandatory rites, including those recognised by the applicable customs and traditions. Registration was described as evidence of marriage rather than the source of its validity.
Where the essential ceremonies have not been performed, registra-tion alone was held incapable of creating a legally valid marital relationship. The ruling was regarded as reaffirming the distinc-tion between statutory registration and the substantive legal require-ments governing Hindu marriages.