Special Marriage Act

The Special Marriage Act provides a framework for inter-caste and inter-religious marriages. Originally enacted in 1872, the consecutive amendments of this legislation failed to do away the Victorian-era protectionist provisions. The Allahabad High Court had recently held that couples seeking to marry under the Special Marriage Act, 1954 are given the option to choose not to publish the mandatory 30-day notice of their intention to marry. This judgement will likely have a bearing on the anti-conversion laws passed in several states in the recent past.