Caretaker Federal Minister for Law and Justice Syed Afzal Haider has said that the government will repeal the Anand Marriage Act 1909 and a new Sikh Marriage Act 2007 will be made and implemented this month. He was talking to a seven-member Sikh delegation, headed by Paramjit Singh Sarna here on Thursday.
The minister said that on President Musharraf's directives he was working on that act and that he had also promised to his Sikh brothers on the 549th birthday of Guru Nanak on November 25 in Nankana Sahib that he would try his best to promulgate the Sikh Marriage Act as he thought that it was the right of every community to live his life according to his religious beliefs.
He said that according to the act, marriages would be registered at six places including Islamabad, four provincial capitals and Nankana Sahib.
While talking to the reporters, head of the Sikh delegation Sardar Paramjit Sigh praised the government's efforts for providing rights to the religious minorities.
He said that the law dealt with the marriage issues including Maintenance Pendent-lite and expenses of proceedings, custody and maintenance of children. He added that in India, Hindu marriage laws were applied to the Sikhs and the Sikh marriage act was the great initiative by the government.