DR. AMBEDKAR AND THE HINDU CODE BILL 559
of the shastras which lay down that a marriage solemnly entered into is an indissoluble tie and cannot be brought to an end ? Here if the married couple was foolish enough not to get an entry made to that effect in the register, their marriage will be invalid.
Coming to the next important provision in this Bill, that is, the provision regarding divorce. The question arises about past practice and we were quoted the smritis of Narad and Parasar by the Honourable the Law Minister to prove that divorce did exist in the Hindu society. I respectfully submit what has been pointed out by Mr. Dwarka Nath Mitter, the dissenting Member of the Rau Committee, before whom these very scriptures were put forward; he has interpreted them not merely on his own knoweldge of Sanskrit but upon the knowledge of learned pandits. He says that the only and the reasonable interpretation and construction of Narad and Parasar is that there can be a breaking of relationship only upto the betrothal stage, not after the actual marriage had taken place. Therefore, it is no use relying upon the smritis to establish the practice of divorce.
One of the arguments advanced by the Honourable the Law Minister, and repeated by Pandit Thakur Das Bhargava, was that divorce already exists in 90 per cent of the Hindu society. Accordingly to Pandit Thakur Das Bhargava, not only in 90 per cent of the Hindu society but even in 95 per cent it exists. I would respectfully ask, if what you say is a fact, where is the necessity of enacting any piece of legislation on divorce ? You are expected to legislate for the majority and not for a hopeless minority. The divorce of the form you have introduced in this piece of legislation will make the life miserable of the 90 or 95 per cent of the Hindu society amongst whom you say divorce already prevails, because according to the provisions of the present Bill it will be incumbent upon each party to the marriage, before it can resort to divorce, to go for the dissolution of marriage before a competent Court of Law. As has been pointed out by one of the gentlemen who wrote a dissenting note to this Select Committee Resort in most of the parts of the country among the agriculturists divorce is resorted to in a very simple manner by the execution of a deed of relinquishment or in any other manner, before the panchayat of the village. You must take into consideration the effect your legislation will have upon the agriculturists who form 90 per cent of your population. What will be the effect if clause 34 is brought on the Statute Book? Every couple, every Member, every party to the marriage will be compelled to knock