Christian personal law
Religious law in India
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- 5 chapters
Related on Lably
Adoption
Christians in India can adopt children by resorting to section 41 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2006 and the guidelines and rules issued by various state governments.
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Divorce
Both husband and wife can seek a divorce on the grounds of:
- Adultery
- Cruelty
- Desertion for more than seven years
- Insanity for more than two years
- Incurable leprosy for more than two years
- Conversion to another religion
- Willful refusal to consummate the marriage
- Not being heard from for 7 years
- Venereal disease in communicable form for two years
- Failure to obey the order for restitution of conjugal rights
However, the wife can additionally sue for divorce on the grounds of:
Guardianship
Christians in India are governed generally by the provisions of the Guardians and Wards Act (Central Act No 8 of 1890). It deals with matters relating to guardianship of minors in respect to their person and property.
Marriage
Christian marriage in India is regulated by the Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872. The Law applies to the entirety of India except for the territories which, immediately before 1 November 1956, formed the states of Travancore-Cochin, Manipur and Jammu and Kashmir. Therefore, the act does not apply to marriages of Christians solemnised in the territories of the former states of Travancore and Cochin which now form part of Kerala.
The Tamil Nadu Legislature, by its Act No 27 of 1995, extended the Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872 to the territories of the Kanyakumari District and Sengottai Thaluk (which were transferred to Tamil Nadu after the reorganization of Indian states). However, civil marriages among Christians in the former princely state of Cochin are regulated by the provisions of the Cochin Christian Civil Marriage Act 1095 ME. Civil marriages among Christians in Jammu and Kashmir are regulated by the Jammu and Kashmir Christian Marriage and Divorce Act, 1957. There is no statute regulating solemnisation of marriages among Christians in Manipur; rather, customary law and personal law prevail there.
Succession
The Indian Succession Act, 1865 was comprehensively amended and consolidated by the Indian Succession Act, 1925. Neither the Indian Succession Act, 1865 nor the act of 1925 was to apply to Christians in India.