Marriage vs. Live-in Relationship- Which is better to Explore Love and Companionship?

Both marriage and live-in relationships are legal in India; however, they have different social, psychological, financial, and ideological bearings.

Society’s approach towards live-in relations makes the biggest difference apart from sharing of economic rights and family support. Most Indian parents look for well settled grooms/brides on matrimonial sites. Only a few parents with highly progressive thoughts approve their children’s decision of getting into live-in relations.

Some youngsters find it difficult to choose between marriage and live-in relations given the rising rate of divorces in India and many other socio-economic reasons. Both the institution of marriage and live-in relationships have their pros and cons. Hence, it is better to take a decision in favour of marriage or live-in relationships after knowing everything about them.

First, let us have a look at social and judicial approaches towards marriage.

A Marriage in the Eyes of Indian Society

The institution of marriage is considered to be sacred and holy by not only the Indian society but also by the rest of the world. Let us have a look at the reasons behind this universal take on marriage:

Social Approach

Marriage between a man and a woman is a social and legal contract. We will take up the judicial approach towards marriage and live-in relations in a separate section. Here, we will discuss the significance of marriage as a social contract.

1. Society associates divinity with the institution of marriage. Every culture keeps God as the witness to the contract of marriage.
2. Marriage ceremonies are presided over by priests like all other holy rituals of society. Some matrimony services also arrange for marriage ceremonies solemnized by priests with the knowledge of best practices of Vedic marriage rituals.
3. Marriage between couples is the union of two families. Both the man and the wife have to share responsibilities of their families without any bias. Married couples also enjoy care and support of their extended family.
4. Society gives recognition to the offspring of married couples. The latter legally inherit the properties of their parents.

Indian constitution doesn’t explain the rights of a live-in couple. However, marriage between a man and a woman is legalised under different marriage Acts.

A Marriage in the Eyes of Indian Judiciary

India is a secular country where people of every religion can peacefully propagate and practice their beliefs. Accordingly, marriage Acts are defined by personal laws of religions. In addition, The Special Marriage Act, 1954, (for inter-caste and inter-religious marriages) and The Foreign Marriage Act, 1969 (for inter-nation marriages) are 2 different Acts defined in the constitution to legalise marriage between two consenting adults (girls above 18 yrs and the boy above 21 yrs) with no medical history of mental illness.

Judicial Approach

So, what are the rights of married couples defined by Indian judiciary system? Let us have a look at a few of the rights and duties of married couples:

1. The wife can stay in the house of her husband.
2. The wife has the rights of maintenance from the income of her husband.
3. Married couples can purchase properties in joint names. They can hold joint accounts and lockers in banks. They can nominate each other in pension accounts. They can also nominate each other in insurance policies and gratuity benefits.
4. In case of the death/disability of a partner with pension benefits, the spouse receives financial assistance from the pension fund.
5. Wife can claim financial maintenance from her husband in the event of divorce. If the court finds that income of the wife is more than her husband then the latter is not liable to pay financial maintenance to her.
6. Married couples can legally adopt children.

Though rights of couples in live-in relationships are not protected by Acts of the Indian constitution, the Supreme Court of India and High Courts have time and again interpreted their rights on humanitarian grounds.

Modern Approach towards Live-in Relationships

Live-in relationships are more popular among educated urban millennials in India who are not financially dependent on their parents. In a majority of the cases, couples who are in live-in relationships don’t live in their hometowns. Since most parents in India don’t support the concept of live-in relations, live-in couples hide their relations from their parents which adds to the complexity of the matter.

Reasons behind the rising popularity of live-in relationships in India

While it is true that the concept of live-in relationship is a blow to the traditional fabric of Indian society, it is also not right to believe that live-in couples have weak moral values. Let us have a look at the reasons behind the rising number of live-in couples in India:

1. Many youngsters believe that given the duties attached with the institution of marriage, it is the end to their personal and career growth. Hence, it is better to be in a no-strings attached relationship with a consenting partner.
2. Fiercely independent youngsters find it difficult to make adjustments. To keep a marriage intact and successful, couples are bound to make multiple adjustments for their mutual benefits.
3. A rise in the number of divorce cases in India is also a reason why many couples choose to be in live-in relations. There is no such Act in Indian judiciary that requires a partner in a live-in relationship to pay for the financial maintenance of the other when they end their relationship.

A Live-in Relationship in the Eyes of Indian Judiciary

Status of the rights and obligations of live-in partners is not defined in the Indian constitution. There is no specific Act or law in our constitution that defines the rights of financial maintenance of live-in partners. It is not clear what kind of family support they get when they cease to have their relationship. There is no law to define the rights of offspring born to live-in couples.

The Supreme Court of India and High Courts have given orders in favour of victims to maintain their dignity and human rights.

Traditional Indian society and Indian judiciary system, both are yet to take a stand in favour of live-in relationships. However, people of the age of ‘Vedas’ and ‘Upanishads’ had a more humane approach towards live-in relationships.

Live-in Relationship in the Eyes of Ancient Hindus

Thousands of years back, live-in relationship was not a new concept to the people of ancient India. We get such instances in scriptures where a man and a woman would cohabit without formalising their marriage. During the times when ‘Vedas’ were written down, society was more open-minded towards live-in relationships provided it followed the path of ‘dharma’ or justice. In fact, among the eight types of marriages sanctioned by the ancient Hindus, ‘Gandharva Vivaha’ had a lot of similarities with modern day live-in relationships.

Gandharva Vivaha

Though there are references of live-in relationships in ancient scriptures of India, we haven’t yet found an instance of a child marriage. ‘Gandharva Vivaha’ was a practice of cohabitation between a consenting man and a woman who had achieved their puberty. This kind of cohabitation was based on mutual trust, love and respect towards each other.

Abhigyan Shakuntalam

Ancient Hindus also had a liberal approach towards the offspring produced out of cohabitation. In ‘Abhigyan Shakuntalam’- the world-renowned epic play written in Sanskrit- the famous poet Kalidasa beautifully depicted the lives of a naive beauty Shakuntala and king Dushyanta who chose to have a ‘Gandharva Vivaha’. When the king returned to his palace, Shakuntala bore their son at the ‘ashram’ or monastery of sage Kanva.

Though it is a story whose historicity is not proved yet, we can see that society didn’t ostracise Shakuntala for giving birth to a child outside a formal marriage. Later, the child was recognised by the king as his own son and was also crowned as the heir to the throne.

The son of Shakuntala and king Dushyanta became a legendary king of ancient India. His name was king Bharata. His noble deeds immortalised him as he is still alive in the name of our country ‘Bharatavarsha’.

A rigid approach towards ‘Gandharva Vivaha’

However, with time, social acceptance of ‘Gandharva Vivaha’ declined. The institution of marriage gained more acceptances in society and live-in relationships were looked down upon.

Conclusion

An informed decision along with a bit of wisdom can end many dilemmas. Since choosing a life partner for cohabitation is such an important decision, parents prefer to search for a groom or a bride for their children on top matrimonial sites in India. Youngsters should decide in favour of marriage or live-in relationships after taking into consideration all the aspects.