Maitri Karar: ‘Adultery contract’ that is helping interfaith, gay couples live together in Gujarat
Maitri Karar is said to have originated among the upper caste Hindus in the 1970s to legitimise having mistresses or relationships outside of marriage
Geniben Thakor, the long Congress Lok Sabha member from Gujarat, has been felicitated at a massive public meeting for her spirited campaign to outlaw a decades-old practice that legitimises having mistresses or relationships outside of marriage.
The event in Patan, a district which falls under her constituency, was organised by the Samast Uttar Gujarat Kshatriya Thakor Samaj.
In her speech, the OBC leader, hailed as an advocate for women’s rights, demanded the axing of what is known as 'Maitri Karar' (friendship contract), calling it a dangerous menace.
However, the practice despite being decried by a section of society for promoting adultery has helped several interfaith, inter-caste and homosexual couples to legally sanctify their union.
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What is Maitri Karar?
“Maitri Karar is dangerous and should be abolished. Married daughters and mothers are lured by anti-social elements. Children and the families of women get adversely affected,” Thakor said at the event.
Maitri Karar, which translates to ‘friendship agreement’, is a traditional contract practice of Gujarat. It is believed to have originated among the upper caste Hindus in the 1970s to legitimise having mistresses or relationships outside of marriage.
A Maitri Karar is commonly used to circumvent the provisions of the Hindu Marriage Act, which prohibits bigamy.
Alpesh Patel, an advocate, told The Federal that the practice still exists in its original form.
“Married men and sometimes even married women opt for Maitri Karar that draws a contract between a married man and his unmarried female partner,” he said.
Accordingly, a contract is drawn up by a Sub-Registrar with his seal of affidavit on a stamp paper of Rs 10, signed by both parties with two witnesses. Each contract is customised to the needs of the two parties.
'System misused by men, unfair to women'
The contract states that the female in the said living arrangement will be provided financial support by her male partner. It thus provides a degree of security to the unmarried woman, Patel said.
“The system is still misused by men and is unfair to women,” explained Patel, who has, however, helped multiple couples to draw a Maitri Karar contract.
But there is another side to Maitri Karar. It is increasingly used as a substitute for marriage for same-sex and interfaith couples who cannot legally marry under Indian law.
Boon for same-sex, interfaith couples
Nineteen-year-old Salma (name changed) and her 20-year-old Hindu male partner have been living together in Banaskantha, a district in North Gujarat without the interference of either families. The couple entered a Maitri Karar contract in January this year with Patel’s help.
“We were scared to get married. Except for a few friends, nobody else knew about our relationship. Marriage requires to announce our relationship a month ahead to the Maulvi and in the marriage registrar’s office. We knew our families would never accept our marriage,” said Salma.
Legal sanctity to non-traditional families
Urvi Sah, an Ahmedabad-based women and LGBTQ rights activist, said the state government recognises only the patriarchal model of the family in the legal framework.
“The family structures which do not reflect heteronormativity, monogamy, and patriarchal values are rejected from the legal framework. But amid the lack of recognition of non-traditional families in the State’s definition of a family unit, diverse structures of intimate relationships have still found ways to exist in different parts of India,” said Sah.
She said the contract was a semi-legal method in which a contractual agreement of a platonic or intimate relationship was signed between two or more consenting people to secure their rights as partners.
“In recent times, the system has been the only recourse for queer couples who want to enter a legal contract. The Hindu Marriage Act does not recognise the rights of the partners in non-marital or queer relationships. Thus, Maitri Karar became popular within queer couples, inter-caste and inter-religious couples who either had no way of getting married or were scared to get married for not being accepted by families,” added Sah, who runs the Arranged Gay Marriage Bureau in Ahmedabad.
“While many couples opt to get married ceremoniously through our bureau, that doesn’t ensure them legal recognition of their relationship. Nor do they get any civil rights that comes with a legal contract such as marriage. So, we suggest that queer couples opt for Maitri Karar. While it is not a full legal contract, it does ensure that the partners would be financial liability of each other,” she added.
