Understanding The Legal Implications Of NRI Marriages In India
What Are The Common Issues NRI Couples Face Other Than Fraudulent Marriages?
Here are several issues commonly encountered in NRI (Non-Resident Indian) marriages:
A woman marries an NRI, only to be abandoned before her husband takes her to the foreign country where he resides.
Women face severe physical and mental abuse, including being beaten, malnourished, confined, and mistreated, forcing them to either escape or be sent back against their will.
A quick engagement is followed by an extravagant wedding and substantial dowry, but after a honeymoon, the NRI husband returns abroad, leaving his wife behind to wait for her visa.
The problem of “honeymoon brides” is significant, with over 20,000 women not having seen their husbands after the honeymoon.
Some women arrive in their husband’s foreign country, only to be stranded at the airport as their husbands never show up.
In some cases, the NRI husband is already married to another woman in the foreign country.
Husbands may provide false information about their employment, immigration status, income, property, or legal standing, deceiving women into marriage.
Women who seek legal recourse, either in India or abroad, for maintenance or divorce face numerous challenges, such as jurisdictional disputes, difficulties with serving or enforcing legal notices, or the husband initiating retaliatory legal proceedings in another country.
What Are The Provisions For Regulating NRI Marriages By The Law Commision In India?
The Law Commission has proposed that all marriages between Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Indian citizens must be registered in India.
The Registration of Marriage of Non-Resident Indian Bill, 2019 mandates NRIs to register their marriage within 30 days. Failure to do so may result in the impounding of their passport by the passport authority.
The Law Commission has recommended the creation of a comprehensive central law to address all aspects of NRI marriages. This includes divorce, maintenance, child custody, and the serving of summons and warrants on NRIs.
Amendments to the Passports Act, 1967 have been suggested, requiring NRIs to declare their marital status. Additionally, they need to link their passports with their spouse’s, and include their marriage registration number on both passports.
A foreign spouse has the right to inherit the assets of a deceased NRI spouse in India.
Marriages between NRIs and Indian women that are solemnised in India cannot be annulled by a foreign court.
Indian court decrees can be enforced in foreign courts, making them executable abroad.
