Anand Marriage Bill Introduced In Rajya Sabha

[Azaad]

The government today brought before Parliament a Bill to amend the 103-year-old statute that hitherto allowed solemnisation of Sikh marriages but not their legal validation.

The Anand Marriage Amendment Bill:2012, introduced in the Rajya Sabha today by Law Minister Salman Khurshid, amends the Anand Marriage Act, 1909, by inserting a new Section enabling registration of marriages performed as per the Sikh rituals (Anand Karaj).

The amendment Bill defines the Sikh marriage ceremony as “Anand Karaj” instead of “Anand” as in the old law. Once passed by both Houses of Parliament, it will give the Sikhs the liberty to register their marriages separately and will exempt them from registering these under the Registration of Births, Marriages and Deaths Act, 1969 (which the government plans to amend to provide for religion neutral registration of marriages across India).

The Sikhs would continue to have the option of registering their marriages under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, as before. It was registration under this Act that had been causing confusion about their religious identity abroad with their marriage certificates describing them as Hindus.

Importantly, the amendment Bill doesn’t provide for divorce among Sikh couples. For a divorce, they would have to use the Hindu Marriage Act.

Senior Supreme Court lawyer HS Phoolka, commenting on the matter, said: “Because the amendment Bill serves a limited purpose of giving Sikh religion a separate identity by allowing marriage registration under a pre-existing law, it is not a complete marriage law.

“Any religion to be recognised must have its separate ceremony of births, deaths and marriages. Sikhs didn’t have a separate marriage law so far and they wanted the Anand Marriage Act amended for the purpose. For divorce, Sikhs can use the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.”

The amendment Bill clearly states that “parties whose marriage has been registered under this Act won’t be required to get marriage registered under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, after the enactment of the proposed amendments in this Bill.” “Today we have won the battle for a separate identity as a religion,” said former MP Tarlochan Singh who led the movement for the Bill. “The SGPC is also against any divorce provision under the Anand Marriage Amendment Bill,” he said. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law had approved these amendments in 2007 when Veerappa Moily was Law Minister. “The Bill need not go again to the standing committee and can be simply taken up and passed,” Tarlochan Singh added

[singher23]

This wouldn't even be an issue if India just had one secular marriage law

[Singh, Mahan]

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Sikh Students Federation rejects amendment to Anand Karaj Act

Source: Punjab Newsline Network- http://www.punjabnew...karaj-act/44131

Tuesday, May 8, 2012 - 14:15

By Jagmohan Singh

AMRITSAR: Sikh Political outfit All India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF) has rejected the amendments to Anand Karaj Act 1909 as proposed under a new Bill Anand Marriage Amendment - 2012. The new bill that was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by Law Minister Salman Khurshid amends the Anand Marriage Act, 1909, by inserting a new Section enabling registration of marriages performed as per the Sikh rituals.

AISSF President Karnail Singh Peermohammad in his statement to media said that proposed amendments to Anand Marriage Act does not give separate identity to Sikh religion as propagated by various advocates and law minister.

The Government’s action of forcing Sikhs to follow Hindu Acts is discrimination against Sikh community and is an open attack on the Sikh identity and is in violation of “equal rights” provided under Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution of India. As per Article 14 & 15 of the Constitution, the Government cannot deny Sikhs to have Separate Acts as Muslim, Christians, Parsis and Jews already have their own acts for Inheritance, disposition of property, adoption and registering marriages added Peermohammad.

Peermohammad stated that it took Government more than sixty years after independence to propose a change in Hindu Marriage Act, which is a failure on the part of the Government to grant separate identity to Sikhs, while keeping a status quo on Inheritance, disposition of property, adoption laws for which again Sikhs have to follow Hindu acts.

AISSF President stated that Amendment to article 25 of the Constitution of India is the only Solution that is acceptable to Sikhs since it will give Sikhism a separate identity.

Sikhism which is a separate religion and is acknowledged as such throughout the world, EXCEPT in Indian legal system and Article 25 of the Constitution of India has amalgamated Sikhism into Hindu religion.

Sikhs across the world object to this undermining of their religious identity and demand restoration of separate identity and status of their religion-Sikhism in Indian Constitution.

Ever since the promulgation of Article 25 of the Indian Constitution, Sikhs have opposed it and demanded restoration of their religion’s separate status. The struggle of Sikhs to have their religion recognized as a separate and distinct religion has resulted in extreme repression of Sikhs by the Indian government added Peermohammad.

On May 15, a memorandum will be submitted to PM Manmohan Singh demanding amendment to Article 25, which is the root cause of all issues related to separate identity of Sikhs in India. AISSF will launch an international campaign to bring consensus among Sikhs and to force Government of India to amend Article 25 of the Constitution of India granting Sikhism a separate identity, said Peermohammad

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