Marriage Of Indian Christians

Christian Marriage Act, 1872

60. On what conditions marriages of Indian Christians may be certified.- Every marriage between [Indian] Christians applying for a certificate, shall, without the preliminary notice required under Part III, be certified under this Part, if the following conditions be fulfilled, and not otherwise :
(1) the age of the man intending to be married [shall not be under [twenty-one years]] and the age of the woman intending to he married [shall not be under [eighteen years]];
(2) neither of the persons intending to be married shall have a wife or husband still living;
(3) in the presence of a person licensed under section 9, and of at least two credible witnesses other than such person, each of the parties shall say to the other
“I call upon these persons here present to witness that I, A.B., in the presence of Almighty God, and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, do take thee C.D., to be my lawful wedded wife or husband” or words to the like effect:

61. Grant of certificate.- When, in respect to any marriage solemnized under this Part, the conditions prescribed in section 60 have been fulfilled, the person licensed as aforesaid, in whose presence the said declaration has been made, shall, on the application of either of the parties to such marriage, and on the payment of a fee of four annas, grant a certificate of the marriage.
The certificate shall be signed by such licensed person, and shall be received in any suit touching the validity of such marriage as conclusive proof of its having been performed.
[62. Keeping of register-book and deposit of extracts therefrom with Registrar General.- (1) Every person licensed under section 9 shall keep in English, or in the vernacular language in ordinary use in the district or State in which the marriage was solemnized, and in such form as the [State] Government by which he was licensed may from time to time prescribe, a register-book of all marriages solemnized under this Part in his presence, and shall deposit in the office of the Registrar General of Births, Deaths and Marriages for the territories under the administration of the said [State] Government in such form and at such intervals as that Government may prescribe, true and duly authenticated extracts from his register-book of all entries made therein since the last of those intervals.

63. Searches In register-book and copies of entries.- Every person licensed under this Act to grant certificates of marriage, and keeping a marriage register-book under section 62, shall, at all reasonable times, allow search to be made in such book and shall, on payment of the proper fee, give a copy, certified under his hand, or any entry therein.

64. Books in which marriages of Indian Christians under Part I or Part III are registered.- The provisions of sections 62 and 63, as to the form of the register-book, depositing extracts therefrom, allowing searches thereof, and giving copies of the entries therein, shall mutatis mutandis, apply to the books kept under section 37.

65. Part VI not to apply to Roman Catholics.- This Part of this Act, except so much of sections 62 and 63 as are referred to in section 64, shall not apply to marriages between Roman Catholics.
Saving of certain marriages.- But nothing herein contained shall invalidate any marriage celebrated between Roman Catholics under the provisions of Part V of Act No. 25 of 1964, previous to the twenty-third day of February, 1865.