Report No. 211

B. Transmission of Marriage Records

The Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1886 provides for the establishment of a "general registry office" in each State under the charge of a "Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages" (Section 6). It also provides for the appointment of "Registrars of Births and Deaths" by the State Governments (Sections 12-18). There is, however, no provision for the appointment of Marriage Registrars.

The Act requires the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages appointed and working under the Act to keep proper indexes of the certified copies of Marriage Registers received by him from the officials working under the provisions of three old laws, viz.:

(i) Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1865 (now Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1936;

(ii) Indian Christian Marriage Act 1872 (still in force); and

(iii) Special Marriage Act 1872 (now Special Marriage Act 1954).

The Act adds that these indexes like those of registers of births and deaths, maintained by the Registrar-General, have "at all reasonable times be open to inspection" and copies of entries in them given to applicants for the same are admissible in evidence for the purpose of proving a marriage (Sections 8-9).