HC: Lying on matrimonial site valid grounds for annulment

The expression 'never married' is substantially different from 'unmarried', which could lend itself to interpretation of either having never been married or merely not being in matrimony then.

- Shruti Kakkar

Deliberately misrepresenting marital status on a matrimonial website is a valid ground for annulment of marriage, the Delhi High Court has ruled, observing that such suppression undermines the foundation of marriage and strikes at the core of free and informed consent.

A division bench of justices Anil Kshetarpal and Harish Vaidyanthan Shankar delivered the ruling on August 20, while hearing a man's appeal against a January 2024 order of a family court that annulled his marriage under the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA).

Under Section 12(1)(c) of HMA, a husband or wife can seek annulment if consent for marriage was obtained by fraud, whether related to the nature of the ceremony or a material fact or circumstance.

The trial court had annulled the marriage on the woman's plea, noting that the man concealed his previous marriage by stating “never married” on Shaadi.com, and also misrepresented his salary.