With an alarming rise in the number of women trapped in fraudulent marriages with NRIs divorcing their wives invoking domicile laws of a foreign country, the Chairperson of Telangana State Commission for Women, Tripurana Venkataratnam, has urged the Union Government to evolve legal safeguards to render justice to women.
While the number of women married to those from the Middle East and Saudi Arabia and abandoned within weeks and months was high among the Muslim community governed by their own personal law, the menace is growing in other communities too, she said. The women, in most cases, have no wherewithal to legally fight the NRI spouse residing outside the country.
Presiding over a consultation workshop on ‘NRI Marriages and Related Issues’ in collaboration with the National Commission for Women here on Saturday, she said one solution could be to have bilateral agreements with other countries that divorce decrees granted by foreign countries to couples married under the Hindu Marriage Act and Indian marriage laws would not be valid. The Supreme Court also ruled that a foreign court could not annul a marriage performed under Indian marriage laws.
She suggested like in Punjab and Haryana, it should be made mandatory for the NRIs to register their updated personal details, address, place of employment with High Commissions when they go to India to marry so as to track them when something goes wrong later.
Aruna B. Venkat of NALSAR University of Law said the concept of limping marriages- married in India and divorced in foreign courts - was becoming a major issue in the society. One solution would be bilateral agreements. In a globalised world, credence should be given to the law by which an individual is governed by, in the country where marriage takes place.
Soumya Mishra, IG, CID and Swathi Lakra, Additional Commissioner of Police, said that police were issuing ‘look out notices’ when the abandoned and unilaterally divorced women registered their complaints.
Earlier, red corner notices used to be issued, but they were withdrawn by the government in cases related to marital disputes. So far, 200 look out notices have been issued in the State and some responded and appeared before the court. Letters were also written to the regional passport offices to impound the passports of such persons. But such a notice to impound the passport would not be effective without a court order, Ms. Soumya Mishra said.
Rajya Sabha member K. Keshava Rao said while the Union Government should do its best to have legal remedies and legislations in place with regard to NRI marriages, parents should also check the antecedents of the NRI grooms before marrying off their daughters to them.
