The Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to strengthen its marriage registration system to prevent the registration of child marriages. The Court made verification of the bride's and groom's dates of birth mandatory and prohibited the issuance of marriage certificates based solely on Aadhaar authentication.
Justice Tej Pratap Tiwari issued the directions in Deepak Pal v. State of U.P. and 3 Others, while examining deficiencies in the verification process followed by marriage registration authorities.
Background of the Case
The Court found that a marriage had been registered using a transfer certificate and an Aadhaar card, without the transfer certificate being verified in accordance with the prescribed procedure.
The judgment emphasised that compulsory marriage registration serves purposes beyond maintaining official records. Referring to the Supreme Court's decision in Seema v. Ashwani Kumar, the Court highlighted its role in preventing child marriages and protecting the rights of married women.
The bench observed, "These purposes show that compulsory registration is not intended merely as a mechanism for maintaining a record of marriages. It is a statutory safeguard against the consequences of an unrecorded or unverifiable matrimonial relationship."
Aadhaar and Transfer Certificates Cannot Be Accepted Without Proper Verification
The Court distinguished between verifying a person's identity and establishing their age. It relied on Supreme Court decisions concerning age determination under Section 94 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, to explain why legally recognised documents must be considered in the prescribed order.
The bench held, "An Aadhaar card cannot prove age and a mere transfer certificate does not answer the description of any class of documents mentioned in section 94(2)(i) of the JJ Act."
It also identified gaps in the existing verification mechanism, including the absence of a clear hierarchy of documents and a procedure for resolving conflicting dates of birth. The Court directed authorities to examine the underlying records, verify them with the issuing authorities and record reasons for accepting a particular date of birth.
Court Issues Statewide Directions
The Court directed that no marriage be registered if either party has not attained the statutory age on the application date: 21 years for the groom and 18 years for the bride. Applications raising reasonable doubts about either party's age must be referred to the Child Marriage Prohibition Officer and District Magistrate.
The bench further directed the State government to ensure that its online portal records the source of age verification and prevents applications from proceeding when verification is incomplete or discrepancies remain unresolved.
The Principal Secretary, Stamp and Registration Department, must ensure that the standard operating procedure addresses conflicting, doubtful and unavailable records. The Inspector General of Registration must also organise statewide training for registration officials.
Additionally, District Legal Services Authority secretaries must inspect marriage registration offices every two months and examine age-verification records. District Judges must coordinate implementation with the concerned authorities.
Decision
The Court ordered compliance with its directions pending amendment of the Uttar Pradesh Marriage Registration Rules, 2017, or the introduction of a comprehensive statutory procedure. The matter was listed for November 27, 2026, along with compliance reports from the authorities concerned.
Case Title: Deepak Pal v. State of U.P. and 3 Others
Case Number: Criminal Appeal No. 12251 of 2025
