Rules notified for registering Sikh marriages in Tamil Nadu

The State government has notified the Tamil Nadu Anand Marriage Registration Rules, 2026, specifying procedures to be followed for registration of Anand Marriages solemnised in the State.

Anand Marriages are solemnised according to Sikh marriage ceremonies, commonly known as Anand Karaj.

The District Registrar concerned would be the District Registrar of Anand Marriages, and the authorised Sub-Registrar would be the Registrar of Anand Marriages within his/her jurisdiction.

These marriages must be registered with the Registrar within whose jurisdiction they were solemnised. The parties to the marriage must submit a form to the Registrar, enclosing documents proving the solemnisation of the marriage and the signatures of the witnesses, and register their marriage within 30 days of its solemnisation. The parties to the marriage who have not registered their marriage within the period specified may also get their marriage registered.

On verification and scrutiny of the memorandum and documents, the Registrar would enter the particulars of the marriage in the register and issue a Certificate of Anand Marriage in Form-IV. If there are reasons to believe that the marriage had not been performed in accordance with the Anand Marriage ceremony, the parties may be asked to produce additional information.

“The Registrar may, for the reasons to be recorded in writing, refuse the registration of marriage, if the parties fail to comply with the directions issued by him,” according to the rules.