ATTORNEYS for the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha’s women’s arm have written to the Attorney General expressing concern about marriage forms that do not allow them to state their occupation.

In a letter to AG Faris Al-Rawi on Wednesday, attorneys Dinesh Rambally, Kiel Taklalsingh, Stefan Ramkissoon and Rhea Khan said the omission from the forms, which are required under the Hindu Marriage Act, “symbolises an archaic attitude towards women in the workplace and indeed within the professional landscape.”

The attorneys said the form requires the husband to give his occupation, but not the wife.

It also said section 21 (2) of the Marriage Act provides for an application to be made to the minister and the names of both parties, their respective professions, occupations and places of residence; but this is not the same for the Hindu Marriage Act.

They identified Forms B and D.

“This legislative position is somewhat anachronistic given the progression of Hindu women and indeed all women in our society,” the letter said.

It added that the SDMS’s female membership has complained of the exclusion of their profession from the marriage certificate and views it as a form of gender bias and/or discrimination.

“You would no doubt appreciate that these sentiments are easy to understand given the contribution of women to the economic progress, enhancement of professions and development of our society,” the letter said.

It also noted that as a “responsible and progressive” organisation, the SDMS felt compelled to bring the issue to Al-Rawi’s attention so that his office can rectify it “in order to better mirror the reality of our present-day society, and in order to show that laws are genuinely relevant to people’s lives.

“We humbly request that these pieces of legislation with their corresponding forms need to be urgently updated.”

The post Hindu women: Put our professions on marriage certificate appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.