BIHAR SPECIAL MARRIAGE RULES, 1955

PREAMBLE

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of Section 3 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (XLIII of 1954), the Governor of Bihar is pleased to appoint all District Sub-Registrars in the State of Bihar to be ex officio Marriage Officers within the limits of their respective jurisdictions for the purpose of the said Act.

In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 50 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (XLIII) of 1954), the Governor of Bihar is pleased to make the following Rules:-

Rule 1.

These Rules may be called the Bihar Special Marriage Rules, 1955.

Rule 2.

In these Rules, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,-

(a)      'the Act' means the Special Marriage Act, 1954 (XLIII) of 1954);

 

(b)      'Form' means a Form appended to these Rules;

 

(c)      'Marriage Certificate Book' means the Marriage Certificate Book, prescribed under Section 13 of the Act;

 

(d)      'Marriage Notice Book' means the Marriage Notice Book prescribed under Section 7 of the Act;

 

(e)      'Marriage Officer' means the Marriage Officer appointed under subsection (1) of Section 3 of the Act;

 

(f)       'Registrar-General' means the Registrar-General appointed under Act VI of 1886; and

 

(g)      'Section' means a Section of the Act.

Rule 3.

(1)     Every Marriage Officer shall cause his name, designation and the regular working hours of his office to be written in English and in the language or languages of the district and displayed in a conspicuous part of the building in which his office is situated. A copy of such notice shall also be published by affixing it to a conspicuous part of the office of the District Magistrate and District Judge of this district.

 

(2)     All registrations at the office shall be made between the hours of 10.30 a.m. and 5 p.m. when the office is held in the day and between the hours of 6.30 a.m. and 11.30 a.m. when the office is held in the morning.

Rule 4.

(1)     Notice of any intended marriage under the Act shall be given in writing in the form specified in the Second Schedule to the Act, to the Marriage Officer by both the parties intending to enter into the marriage, either in person or by registered post.

 

(2)     Where the notice is delivered in person, the fee prescribed therefor in Rule 10 shall be paid directly in cash to the Marriage Officer; where the notice is sent by registered post, the fee shall be remitted by money order at the remitter's expense and the receipt issued to the remitter by the Post Office through which the remittance is made shall be attached to the notice.

 

(3)     As soon as the notice has been received by the Marriage Officer, a distinctive serial number shall be entered on it and such number and the date of receipt of the notice shall be attested by the signature of the Marriage Officer. If the notice is in conformity with the requirements of the Act, it shall be entered in the Marriage Notice Book in Form I which shall be a bound volume, and the pages of which shall be machine-numbered consecutively, with a nominal index attached. If the notice is not in conformity with requirements of the Act, it shall be got rectified by the parties if they are present, or returned to them by post for rectification and retransmission within a date to be fixed. Every item of rectification shall be attested by both the parties.

Rule 5.

A true copy of the notice under the seal and signature of the Marriage Officer shall be exhibited in a conspicuous place in his office for thirty days before the registration of the marriage.

Rule 6.

(1)     Where an objection to the solemnization of an intended marriage together with the fee prescribed therefor in Rule 10 has been received and recorded by the Marriage Officer, he shall, unless by an order in writing he rejects the objection summarily on the ground that the objection is not based on contravention of any of the conditions specified in Section 4, enquire into the objection on a day to be fixed by him. The day so fixed shall not be later than thirty days from the date of the receipt of the objection. He shall also send a copy of the objections to the parties to the intended marriage.

 

(2)     The Marriage Officer shall, at the time of recording the objection, ascertain from the objector whether he has any documents on which he relies or whether he desires any witness or witnesses to be examined on his behalf. If the objector states that he has, the Marriage Officer shall require the objector to produce the documents or the witnesses on the day fixed for the enquiry. If the objector desires that summonses shall be issued to the witnesses to appear and give evidence or to produce any document, the Marriage Officer shall issue such summonses cited, on payment of the process fee prescribed therefor in Rule 10 and the reasonable expenses of travelling and subsistence of the witnesses. The enquiry relating to the objection including the production of documents and the examination of witnesses shall be completed and the decision of Marriage Officer arrived at within the period of thirty days specified in Section 8. If, within the prescribed period, the documents are not produced and the witnesses do not appear before the Marriage Officer, the Marriage Officer shall take a decision without waiting for the production of such document or the appearance of such witnesses.

 

(3)     The Marriage Officer shall also give notice of the date and time fixed for the enquiry to the parties to the intended marriage.

 

(4)     The notice or summons to any party or witness under this Rule shall be in Form II or Form 111, as the case may be, and shall be sent by registered post.

 

(5)     On the day fixed for the enquiry or on any adjourned date, the Marriage Officer shall record in his own hand the evidence given in the course of enquiry.

 

(6)     If the Marriage Officer is satisfied that the objection is baseless, he shall register the marriage, otherwise the registration shall be refused and the reasons for such refusal shall be entered in the register of refusal, which shall be maintained by him in Form IV. The order shall be communicated to the parties concerned, including the objector.

Rule 7.

(1)     The place, other than a Marriage Officer's office, where a marriage is to be registered, shall be determined by the parties themselves, who shall specify such place in writing at the time when the notice of the intended marriage is given to the Marriage Officer. Such marriage may be registered at any reasonable hour.

(2)     The Marriage officers shall charge travelling allowance as per travelling allowance rule in addition to the fee payable under clause 9 of Rule 10 for registration/solemization of marriage outside his office.]

Rule 8.

(1)     An application under Section 16 for the registration of the marriage celebrated in other forms shall be in Form V.

 

(2)     Such application shall be presented to the Marriage Officer by any one of the parties in person or sent to him by registered post.

 

(3)     On receipt of an application under sub-rule (1) the Marriage Officer shall publish a notice thereof in Form VI under his seal and signature in a conspicuous place in his office.

 

(4)     Any objection received within the said period together with the fee prescribed therefor in Rule 10 shall be recorded and the enquiry in respect thereto made as nearly as possible in the manner prescribed in Rule 6.

Rule 9.

(1)     The book of certificate of marriage as prescribed in the fourth Schedule under Section 13 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 and also as prescribed in the fifth Schedule under Section 16 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 and also the book of certificate of Registration of Marriage celebrated in other forms shall be a bound Register whose pages shall be consecutively be numbered.

 

(2)     The book of certificate of marriages under above sub-rule (1), the certificate shall be in three identical copies of the same serial.

The first copy of the certificate shall be given to the bride/wife second copy of the same serial number shall be given to the bride groom/husband and the third copy of the same serial number shall be preserved in the office of the Marriage Registrar as a permanent record.

(3)     Serial number of the certificate shall be printed on each copy of the Certificate, the date of issue of the certificate shall be given by the Special Marriage Officer either by his own hands or shall be printed by the Computer.]

Rule 10.

The following fees shall be levied by the Marriage Officer:-

(1)     For every notice of intendent marriage or application for registration of a marriage (to be paid by the parties to the marriage). Rs. 100.00

 

(2)     For recording an objection (to be paid by the objector) Rs. 100.00

 

(3)     for every enquiry in to an objection (to be paid by objector) Rs. 200.00

 

(4)     for every notice and for every summons to a witness to appear and give evidence and produce a document (to be paid by the parties) Rs. 50.00

 

(5)     for solemnising or a registering a marriage to be paid by the parties to the marriage). Rs. 200.00

 

(6)     for a certified of an entry

 

(a)      In the Marriage Notice Book other than a entry relating to an objection; or

 

(b)      In the marriage certificate Book (to be paid by the applicant). Rs. 100.00

 

(7)     For a certified copy of any entry in the marriage notice Book other than a notice or of any other proceeding not already provided for (to be paid by the applicant). Rs. 100.00

 

(8)     For registering a marriage celebrated in other terms under Section 15. Rs. 200.00

 

(9)     ?(a) For solemnising a marriage at any place outside the office of the Marriage officer. Rs. 600.00

(b) For marriage officer Rs. 25.00

(10)   ?For making a search (to be paid by the applicant-

 

(a)      If the entry is of the current year. Rs. 50.00

 

(b)      If the entry relates to any previous year or years. Rs. 100.00

The fee prescribed above shall be paid either in person or remitted by money-order to the marriage officer.

A receipt duly signed by marriage officer shall be issued for all fees received by him under the Act and Rules, the receipt books shall be bound volume of one hundred leaves each with foils and counterfoils which shall be machine numbered consecutively. All money received by the marriage officer except the fee mentioned in clause 9 (b), which may be retained by him, shall by remitted into local treasury.

Rule 11.

Copies of entries in the Marriage Certificate Book which Marriage Officers are required to send under Section 48 to the Registrar General shall be certified in Form VII and shall be sent at intervals of three months on, or as nearly as possible after, the 1st of January, April, July and October in each year. Should no entries have been made in the Book during the preceding three months, a certificate to this effect shall be sent to the said Registrar General.

Rule 12.

An annual alphabetical index of all marriages registered under the Act shall be prepared and maintained in the office of the Marriage Officer and the Registrar General in the following form:-

Serial No.	Name	Father's name and address	Marriage Certificate Serial No. Volume No.		Book. Page No.
1	2	3	4	5	6

Rule 13.

 The fees realized by the Sub-Registrar or other Government servants as ex officio Marriage Registrars shall be credited to Government under the head "XI- Registration-Miscellaneous-Fees under the Special Marriage Act" and the travelling allowance shall be retained by them.

Rule 14.

 Forms and books shall be supplied free of cost to Marriage Registrars by the Registrar General.

Rule 15.

The books and forms shall be preserved as follows:-

(i)?? ?Marriage Certificate Book-Permanent.

(ii)? ?Marriage Notice Book-Permanent.

(iii)? ?Index-Permanent.

(iv)? ?Notice of registration-3 years.

(v) ???Declaration-Permanent.

(vi)? ?Refusal register-12 years.