By Admin 
Kerala High Court has given an important decision. In fact, the Kerala High Court gave a historic decision saying that a Muslim man cannot register his second marriage without informing his first wife. As long as the first marriage is valid and the wife is alive. The court has made it clear that before registering the second marriage, it will be necessary for the man to send a notice to his first wife and obtain her consent. If the first wife objects to this, the registrar will have to send the case to the civil court to confirm the validity of the second marriage. The court has cited Kerala Marriage Registration Rules 2008 for this.
What was the matter?
This decision of the Kerala High Court came on the petition of a Muslim man and his second wife. Who had challenged the decision of Thrikkaripur Gram Panchayat of Kasargod district of Kerala. The Panchayat had refused to register the man’s second marriage. The petitioner had admitted that he had a first wife and two children. He claimed that he had married for the second time in 2017 only with the consent of his first wife and he only wanted to secure the property rights of his second wife and the children born to him. On this petition, Justice PV Kunhikrishnan said that Muslim personal law allows a man to have more than one marriage. But this cannot take away anyone’s constitutional right to a normal and fair trial.
Kerala High Court said that when a man wants to register a marriage, he should respect the constitutional orders. According to the rules of 2008, a Muslim man cannot register his second marriage without informing his first wife, with whom his marriage is still valid. The court further said that if a husband neglects his wife, does not maintain her or tortures her and then marries a second time citing personal law, then it would be fair to give the first wife a chance to be heard. Justice Kunhikrishnan said that gender equality is a constitutional right of every citizen; At the same time, men are not superior to women in this, it is not only a women’s issue but also a human issue.
Court’s comment on Quran and Shariat also
The court said that according to the Quran, more than one marriage is valid but the husband has to do justice to all the wives. Although the Quran does not require the consent of the first wife for a second marriage, informing her and taking her opinion is in line with the principles of justice and transparency. The court found that the petitioner did not make his first wife a party in the case, hence his petition was rejected.
However, the court has allowed that he can apply for re-registration. In such a situation, the register will have to send a notice to the first wife and give her an opportunity to present her views. At the same time, this decision of the court is being considered as a news of relief for those women whose husbands remarry without their knowledge. The High Court has made it clear that constitutional rights are above personal law and no woman’s rights can be taken away without hearing her.
Also read: Bihar Assembly Election 2025: How does EVM work in areas where there is no electricity? Is voting conducted through ballot paper?