Dear Expert ,
My query is that my father got married with other lady during the lifetime of my mother. my mother passed away in 2011. i have documents to prove that my father nominated that lady as a wife in LIC and other documents as well as that lady also claimed herself wife of my father in her all documents before 2011.Marrige done between my father and that lady was not correct in eye of court just because of no divorce was done between my father and my mother .my father and that lady got remarried in 2016 and marriage got registered in registrar office. in the application to register the marriage that lady claims herself as unmarried.though that lady claims herself as the wife of my father before 2011. on the basis of this fact ,i want challenge the validity of marriage done in 2016. please help me how to proceed.
thanks and regards,
Ravindra Kumar
As per section 5, 11 and 17 of the Hindu Marriage Act, the bigamous marriages are void and penal.
The Hindu Marriage Act came into force on 18 of May 1955. The eradication and criminalization of Hindu Polygamy was made clear under the Act. Thus, Monogamy was the only choice to be followed to for the Hindu male and female as well. This appears to be a classic case of no-rubbish legislative mediation. It was made perfectly clear that a Hindu person was not allowed to have a second marriage unless the first marriage is dissolved, either by a divorce or due to the death of any spouse.
The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 carefully enacts monogamy under Section 11 of the act where it is also clearly stated that bigamous marriages are null and void. And when someone practices this act, he/she is punished according to Section 17 of the Hindu Marriage Act read with Section 494 and 495 of the IPC, which makes such an act a punishable offence.
But if the second marriage was done after the dissolution of the first one, it will be valid and legal.
