1992 Supreme(J&K) 82
R.P.SETHI
Lajya Devi – Appellant
Versus
Kamla Devi – Respondent
Advocates Appeared:
Advocate For Appellant: J.P. Singh
Advocate For Respondent: R.P. Bakshi
Judgement Key Points
Certainly. Based on the provided legal document, here are the key points summarized:
- A marriage that is void under the law is considered non-existent from the outset and can be declared as such by a civil court without the need for a declaration during the lifetime of either spouse (!) (!) .
- The distinction between void and voidable marriages is significant: void marriages are null and have no legal effect, whereas voidable marriages are valid until annulled by a court (!) (!) .
- Marriages in contravention of the conditions specified in the relevant law are deemed void, and such marriages do not confer the status of husband and wife (!) (!) .
- The authority to declare a marriage void generally lies with the court designated by law, and such declarations are based on specific statutory provisions (!) (!) .
- Custom, as a rule recognized by law, must be ancient, certain, reasonable, and not opposed to public policy to be valid and enforceable (!) (!) .
- Oral evidence can be admissible even when documentary evidence is required, but the scope of admissibility may be influenced by provisions of the Evidence Act (!) (!) .
- The cause of action for a suit for declaration accrues at the time when the right to sue arises, and courts can declare parties invalid without necessarily framing specific issues on the invalidity (!) (!) (!) .
- The jurisdiction of civil courts to entertain suits challenging the validity of marriages, including those deemed void, is recognized, and such suits can be initiated even after the death of the spouses involved (!) (!) .
- The court emphasized that questions related to the validity of a marriage, including its legality and the recognition of custom, are primarily questions of law and can be adjudicated by courts accordingly (!) (!) (!) .
Please let me know if you need further elaboration or assistance with specific legal interpretations.
1) Aggrieved by the judgments and decrees of trial court and the appellate court, the defendant has preferred this second appeal formulating the following questions as substantial questions of law. :
1) Whether a marriage can be declared as null and void by a civil court without its having been got so declared during the life time of one of the spouse?
2) What is meant by custom and how it can be proved and could a custom pleaded by a party be refused to be adjudicated if the same is not found to be ancient in nature and on the other hand being of recent origin?
3) Can oral evidence led by a party be held as inadmissible in evidence when the documentary evidence thereof has to be in possession of the opposite party and could Sections 91 & 92 of the Evidence Act be pressed into service to render oral evidence inadmissible in respect of a document which is claimed to be compulsorily required to be in writing?
4) When the cause of action shall be deemed to have accrued to a plaintiff in a suit for delaration? and
5) Can a Court declare the party of a lis invalid without putting the parties to specific issues regarding the invalidity of the marriage?"
Some of the facts relevant for
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