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Varun Kumar (SE)     25 October 2014

Religious cusomts

Hi My Friend got married to a girl of nearly equal degree.... 

In Marriage , My Friend Side done, Whatever the religious customs (Like Engagement/Marriage / Bangle Function ) supposed to be done without prompting them.Girls side enjoyed and got everything .

 

But when comes to Girls Side, they are not willing to do so customs like Naming Ceremony/ Furnitures when relocating ...Wedding Anniversary/Diwali  functions...They say it is not our customs  for each and everything....What to do ? My Friend insisting them to do the customs ? 

 

Is Customs come under dowry ?



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 2 Replies

Tajobsindia (Senior Partner )     25 October 2014

@ Author,

 

1. If relationship is working fine between them then it is common that one should avoid forcing other spouse to follow such customs least their marriage itself breaks down.


2. Prior to marriage one should have specifically asked questions relating to customs that other side follows or not follows or adds over and above than what your friend's side follows.


3. No, customs does not come under dowry allegations but comes under 'cruelty' allegations in civil suit matters. In your brief you mention and I quote you "not willing to do..." I mean were any monetary consideration expected out of say if 'willing to do...' or you are complaining of 'physical participation without money for willing to follow customs?' Be clear with wordings, as both may attract diverse laws and one law that may attract here is called 'dowry' against you - your family if 'monetary consideration" is 'hint' behind "not willing to do..." .


4.
eg. on lighter note, your friend's side may have custom of touching feet of family elders every morning just after wake up, she may not follow such custom.  Just because she is not following your friend's customs, it does not mean the marriage has to break and/or charges of dowry should be hurled on another and what is mentioned in your brief as customs not being followed by her are not even cruelty. There is a fine line between orthodox and un-orthodox cultures and people following traditional customs and if your friend is strict follower of customs then same nature spouse he should have tested and married too. least later such custom - culture issues do not crop up between two families - spouses but now it is too late unless marriage needs to be broken between them just because she is not following certain customs are some of my views.  If it helps then let me add it reads strange that she is not enjoying such generic customs which most Asians follow coming from different ethnic  backgrounds in India but that is so, some do not.

 

[Last reply]

Adv. Chandrasekhar (Advocate)     26 October 2014

Your friend's family arguments are absolutely wrong, idiotic and intented to create family disputes on extraneous grounds with malafide intentions.  If practice of custom is insisted, we can look into the definition of custom, provided in Hindu Marriage Act. "

3. Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

 

(a)

the expressions “custom” and “usage” signify any rule which, having been continuously and uniformly observed for a long time, has obtained the force of law among Hindus in any local area, tribe-, community, group or family :

Provided that the rule is certain and not unreasonable or opposed to public policy ; and

Provided further that in the case of a rule applicable only to a family it has not been discontinued by the family"

 

The custom your friend is insisting to implement, it has to be proved that it has been consistently implemented in his family.  The matter does not stop there.  Is it not against public policy.  I dare say, yes, it is against public policy.  You are asking the girl's father to incur the expenditure for naming ceremony, if they it with limited budget, your friend will again bicker that it has not been organized in great grandiose suited to their status.  Again, what is that weird custom, which forces the girl's father to meet the expenses of furniture shifting of the couple.  And next, every year Deewali comes, and why should girl's father has to organize it?  All these custom is a big drama to hoodwink the demand of dowry.  It is naked demand of dowry, even though it does not fall in the definition of the dowry.  If the groom's family insist that these custom have to be followed, it is nothing but demanding the dowry in indirect way and there is a basic principle in law that which you cannot do directly, you cannot do indirectly.  If the groom's family has any sensibility, they get rid of these useless, obnoxious and illegal custom and live life with  dignity or else see the rigours of law in near future.  Finally, if the girl's side accepted the gifts presented by the groom do not debar them to refuse the custom of the boy's family, which involves huges amounts. 


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