The Delhi high court has upheld a trial court’s order by restituting the marriage of a couple while dismissing the wife’s plea that the marriage was not solemnised as per Hindu rites and ceremonies. Dismissing the appeal filed by Meghan Machida, Justice Kailash Gambhir said that the husband, S. Sharma, had been able to prove to the satisfaction of the court that the marriage was solemnised as per the Hindu rites and rituals.
Ms Machida had challenged the trial court order on the ground that her marriage to S. Sharma, was not formalised as per the Hindu rites and rituals she had entered into it under alleged intoxication.
She alleged that before giving her consent for the marriage, she was made to drink cold drink adulterated with drug. The couple got married in 2005. While the parents of the husband, reconciled themselves to their son’s decision, the woman’s parents maintained their intransigence. When Ms Machida’s parents returned from Australia, she went to meet them and never returned to her matrimonial home. The court, after going through the submissions made by both the parties, said, “It cannot be lost sight of the fact that a petition under Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA) is an effort by one of the parties to the marriage to reconcile the differences which might have arisen between them.’’