Question

Under the Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872, between which hours must a marriage generally be solemnized?

• A. Between seven in the morning and eight in the evening
• B. Between five in the morning and six in the evening
• C. Between six in the morning and seven in the evening
• D. Between six in the morning and nine in the evening

Hint:

Many personal laws contain procedural requirements relating to place, witnesses, and timing. For the Indian Christian Marriage Act, remember the statutory time window: 6 A.M. to 7 P.M.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Instead of just quoting the rule, it helps to think about why a marriage law from 1872 would fix any hours at all, and then use that reasoning to identify the right window among the choices.

1. Why timing matters for this Act: Nineteenth-century marriage legislation for Christians was designed to keep the ceremony open, verifiable and free from secrecy, which is best achieved by requiring marriages to take place during daylight hours when witnesses, clergy and registrars are normally available.
2. Matching this reasoning to the options: A window such as five in the morning to six in the evening starts before typical daylight activity, and windows like seven in the morning to eight in the evening or six in the morning to nine in the evening extend into the evening beyond ordinary daylight hours, both moving away from the purpose of transparency the law intended.
3. The window that fits: Between six in the morning and seven in the evening covers the normal span of daylight and public activity in the way the framers of the Act intended, and this is exactly the window the Act specifies as the general rule, subject to a special licence permitting a different time.

Thinking through the purpose behind the provision, rather than the words alone, still points to the same conclusion.

So the correct answer is Between six in the morning and seven in the evening.

Answer 2

A useful way to double check a timing question like this is to notice how the options are built and let that structure narrow down the right one.

1. Grouping by starting hour: Two of the four options begin at six in the morning, and two begin at other hours, five in the morning and seven in the morning respectively. Since the Act's rule is well known to start the permitted window at six in the morning, the two options that start at five or seven can already be set aside.
2. Between five in the morning and six in the evening: This falls outside the group that begins at six in the morning, so it is not the answer.
3. Between seven in the morning and eight in the evening: This also falls outside the six-in-the-morning group, so it too is ruled out.
4. Comparing the remaining two, six in the morning to seven in the evening, and six in the morning to nine in the evening: Both share the correct starting hour, so the choice comes down to the closing hour. The statutory rule fixes the closing hour at seven in the evening, not nine, so the window ending at nine in the evening does not match, while the window ending at seven in the evening does.

Narrowing the four options down by their starting and then their closing hour leaves only one window that matches the Act's actual rule.

Therefore, the correct answer is Between six in the morning and seven in the evening.