Marriage certificate form query - marriage to foreigner

usually if one of the persons intending to marry is a foreign citizen the marriage can be registered under foreign marriage act and as per my knowledge special marriage act is applicable when both are indian citzens and belong to different religion.i request the learned members opinion on this.

Under Special Marriage Act, people of two different religions can get married.

Today, I visited the Municipal Corporation again after making the affidavit to submit the documents.

The Jr. Clerk, denied accepting the application form stating that We both are from different religion and they cannot issue marriage certificate unless one of us convert to another religion and get a religion conversion certificate.

This was outright ridiculus.

He should not be the person deciding the choice of one's religion.

I would like to know what steps should be taken for this. I would like to get feedback from the lawyers about this racial profiling.

In your first post, you said and I quote - "We have been married in India under the special marriage act".  So, now your worry is only to obtain marriage certificate and not registration of marriage. If that is so, marriage cetificates are public documents and not only parties any one can obtain such certificate.  So, apply for marriage certificate on a simple paper and pay the requisite fee in cash and within a week you will get it.  Otherwise, you simply contact any local advocate and he will apply and get it.  It is also confusing for me that why you approached municipal authorities to obtain special marriage certificate.  This certificate is availalble in the office of the marriage officer appointed by the Govt.  And municipal authorities will not maintain such record.  Under the Special Marriage Act, in some States the Additional District Judge is empowered as marriage officer and in some states Sub-Divisional Magistrate is appointed for that purpose. Anyhow, to avoid difficulties contact local advocate.  If any person is aggrieved against the marriage officer for not providing the marriage certificate, the legal remedy is to approach the HC under writ jurisdiction.

Prabhakar, Thank you for your valuable inputs.

You are right it is a very simple process (55 Rs Fee and two 100 Rs Stamps from Post office).

We have one single municipal office with various depts within the building and marriage / death / birth certificates registration process is done at the single place (I hope, I didn't confuse you in my earlier message).

Also, I applied for a - Marriage Certificate (No special marriage certificate request by us).

Our file was denied because our religions were different (Hinduism & Judism). The clerk showed me a paper stating that we only give marriage certificate when both are from one religion. So go out and get a religion conversion certificate and then apply again.

This was the most ridiculous thing I had ever faced (there were others less ridiculous than this.)

I informed that we have marriage under Special Marriage Act, 1954 and we are not required to change religions. But he was adament on the paper that he had from the collector's office.

This according to me is illegal to force someone to convert to other religion.

I would like to take a legal action against that Jr. Clerk.

The reason for enacting the "Special Marriage Act" is to give liberty to the people of different religious denominations to marry without converting their religiion.  It is in consonance of the Fundamental right to "freedom of religion".  Obviously, the junior clerk may be far away from all these nuances.  So engage an advocate and along with him approach the clerk and also his superior officer and do not forget to record their inane and crass comments on your mobile.  You can get it even through the RTI.  If that also not viable, then only option left to you is to file writ petition in HC.  For obtaining marriage certificate, conversion of religion is not at all warranted.  Now India is slipping from democratic country to mono-religious Hindu kingdom ruled by RSS and the junior clerk is "unctuous Uriah" of Charles Dicken's fiction character. 

I picked up a RTI form from the RTI dept today as well.

I would need to find a local lawyer to help me file the RTI.

When I have all the valid papers, why can't they accept the application.

I would also like to know if there is any legal action that can be taken against a govt. employee for demanding a religious conversion certificate or else he won't process the application.

Yes, forcing any person to convert his religion is a penal offence.  But in Gujarat, in these days,  you may not find sympathetical ear to understand your problem.  Even if you succeed to file FIR, that junior clerk will become turn coat and before police officers, sucking his thumb, donning innocent face, he simply says that he never asked you to change your religion.  Crooked people can never be upright in their thoughts and deeds.

He infact give me a sample copy of religious conversion certificate.

Stating this is type of conversion certificate that needs to be provided. He infact made a photocopy and gave it to me.

i also agree with prabhakar sir and also sarvnanth sir ananad as you follow tell by prabhakar sir bec your marriage under special marriage act so you treat as law