Notaries cannot issue marriage certificates or register marriage: Orissa HC

Notaries are not authorised to register marriages or issue marriage certificates, the Orissa High Court has observed. While asking the notaries to refrain from issuing marriage certificates, the Division Bench of Justice Sangam Kumar Sahoo and Justice Sibo Sankar Mishra observed:

“Due to such extra-legal and subterfuge arrangements by the Notaries, parties are made to believe that they are legally married when in fact their marriage do not have even the slightest of legal sanctity.”

As per a LiveLaw report, the Orissa High Court was hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by a man who alleged that his wife has been illegally detained by her parents and they are not allowing her to live with him.

While asking the petitioner whether he had any documentary proof like photographs, video recordings, the Court found that a marriage declaration document was prepared on which both the petitioner and the girl had put their signatures and it was sworn before a notary, the report said.

"Time and again Courts across the country have echoed it in identical voice that Notaries are neither authorised to issue certificates of marriage nor they are legally entitled to notarize any signed declaration of marriage, which is apparently beyond the scope of their functions prescribed under section 8 of the Notaries Act, 1952 (Act no.53 of 1952),” the Court added.