A civil society group in Meghalaya on Tuesday demanded that the election authorities make it mandatory for aspiring candidates to furnish marriage certificates while filing nomination papers for the coming Assembly polls.
In a memorandum to Chief Electoral Officer Frederick Roy Kharkongor, the Maitshaphrang Movement (MSM) said the marriage law in force in the state had made it mandatory for married men and women to furnish marriage certificates for all official purposes.
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MSM Convener Michael N. Syiem said the demand was based on the Meghalaya Compulsory Registration of Marriage Act, 2012, and was in public interest.
“It is mandatory for all candidates to furnish marriage registration certificates along with other relevant documents at the time of filing of their nomination papers, failing which their nomination papers should be declared invalid,” he said.
Syiem said it will be the test case to see how this Act is implemented effectively in the state and also to know if there were loopholes in the said law.
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The Chief Electoral Officer however said that elections were governed by the Representation of People Act and not the state law.
The term of the current Assembly comes to an end in March 2018.