In%20an%20important%20judgment%20a%20single%20judge%20Bench%20of%20the%20Allahabad%20High%20Court%20has%20ruled%20that%20%u201Cpublication%20of%20notice%20and%20inviting%20objections%20to%20the%20intended%20marriage%u201D%20under%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%20violates%20%u201Cfundamental%20rights%20of%20liberty%20and%20privacy%2C%20including%20within%20its%20sphere%20freedom%20to%20choose%20for%20marriage%20without%20interference%20from%20state%20and%20non-state%20actors%2C%20of%20the%20persons%20concerned%u201D.%20Publication%20of%20the%20notice%20will%20be%20subject%20to%20the%20choice%20of%20the%20couple.

The%20case%20pertained%20to%20a%20habeas%20corpus%20petition%20which%20alleged%20that%20a%20Muslim%20girl%20wanting%20to%20marry%20a%20Hindu%20man%20was%20detained%20against%20her%20wishes.

The%20ruling%20which%20deals%20with%20Sections%206%20and%207%20of%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%20has%20a%20direct%20bearing%20on%20the%20controversial%20Uttar%20Pradesh%20Prohibition%20of%20Unlawful%20Conversion%20of%20Religion%20Ordinance%202020%20which%20mandates%20that%20inter-faith%20couples%20wanting%20to%20marry%20will%20have%20to%20take%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%20route%20as%20the%20law%20bans%20conversions%20for%20marriage.

Interpreting%20Sections%206%20and%207%20of%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%2C%20Justice%20Vivek%20Chaudhary%20said%2C%20%u201CThis%20court%20mandates%20that%20while%20giving%20notice%20under%20section%205%20of%20the%20Act%20of%201954%20it%20shall%20be%20optional%20for%20the%20parties%20to%20the%20intended%20marriage%20to%20make%20a%20request%20in%20writing%20to%20the%20Marriage%20Officer%20to%20publish%20or%20not%20to%20publish%20a%20notice%20under%20Section%206%20and%20follow%20the%20procedure%20of%20objections%20as%20prescribed%20under%20the%20Act%20of%201954.%20In%20case%20they%20do%20not%20make%20such%20a%20request%20for%20the%20publication%20of%20notice%20in%20writing%20while%20giving%20notice%20under%20Section%205%20of%20the%20Act%2C%20the%20%u201CMarriage%20Officer%20shall%20not%20publish%20any%20such%20notice%20or%20entertain%20objections%20to%20the%20intended%20marriage%20and%20proceed%20with%20the%20solemnization%20of%20the%20marriage.%u201D

The%20judgment%20points%20out%20that%20%u201Cmarriages%20performed%20under%20various%20personal%20laws%20do%20not%20require%20publication%20of%20any%20notice%20or%20calling%20for%20objections%20with%20regard%20to%20such%20a%20marriage%u201D.

The%20judgment%20not%20only%20makes%20Sections%206%20and%207%20of%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%20which%20are%20obstructive%2C%20but%20it%20also%20has%20a%20bearing%20on%20the%20recently%20passed%20Uttar%20Pradesh%20ordinance%20on%20unlawful%20conversions.%20The%20UP%20law%20has%20made%20it%20mandatory%20for%20inter-faith%20couples%20to%20register%20under%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act.

Under%20the%20UP%20law%2C%20if%20an%20inter-faith%20marriage%20is%20solemnised%20without%20going%20through%20the%20proceedings%20under%20the%20Special%20Marriage%20Act%2C%20a%20first%20information%20report%20can%20be%20lodged%20by%20the%20%u201Caggrieved%20person%2C%20his/her%20parents%2C%20siblings%20or%20any%20other%20person%20who%20is%20related%20to%20him/her%20by%20blood%2C%20marriage%20or%20adoption%u201D.

In%20one%20month%20of%20the%20law%20being%20passed%2C%2049%20persons%20were%20jailed%20in%2014%20cases%20registered%20in%20the%20state.%20In%20one%20case%20the%20couple%20involved%20belonged%20to%20same%20religion—Islam.%20In%20another%20case%20a%20Hindu-Muslim%20couple%20was%20detained%20on%20the%20complaint%20of%20a%20neighbour%20although%20families%20of%20the%20two%20had%20no%20problem%20with%20the%20wedding.%20There%20were%20other%20cases%20in%20which%20innocents%20were%20sent%20to%20jail%20before%20the%20court%20found%20them%20not%20guilty%20of%20any%20crime.%20The%20law%20has%20clearly%20been%20blatantly%20used%20to%20harass%20inter-faith%20couples.

The%20welcome%20judgment%20comes%20at%20a%20time%20when%20some%20BJP%20governments%20are%20out%20to%20crucify%20love%20in%20the%20name%20of%20love%20jihad.

%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23UttarPradesh%22%20data-user-id%3D%228fpxFfZw7Hfa%22%20href%3D%22/topic/uttar-pradesh%22%3E%23UttarPradesh%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23Marriage%22%20data-user-id%3D%22g5Ttcm1wtB2n%22%20href%3D%22/topic/marriage%22%3E%23Marriage%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23AllahabadHighCourt%22%20data-user-id%3D%22Fno9suk6c5cp%22%20href%3D%22/topic/allahabad-high-court%22%3E%23AllahabadHighCourt%3C/a%3E%26nbsp%3B