Marriage is considered as a sacred bond in our culture. In India, Marriage is a very important decision for an individual for their parents/families' support.
But with time, modernisation took place in the form of adopting Western culture, then Relationships, love marriage etc. With it, these cultures came into existence in India.
Another new aspect of modernization is "Live-in relationship". Live-in relationahip i.e. Cohabitation is an arrangement whereby two people decide to live together on a long term or permanent basis in an emotionally and/or sexually intimate relationship.
This is a very modern concept which is continuously challenging Indian culture. Once upon a time, In our culture where a boy and a girl were forbidden to see each other before marriage are now in a live-in relationship which means you can live together even without marriage.
This brings both positive and negative impacts.
Positive:
- Deeper compatibility test
- Financial transparency and shared responsibility
- Emotional intimacy and companionship
- Greater independence and freedom
- Trial period for marriage
Negative
- Social stigma
- Unclear commitment
- Financial complications
- Legal ambiguity
- Safety issues (e.g. cases like Shraddha murder case, Nikki yadav murder case, etc.)
Now live-in relationships are legal in India. India doesn't have any specific laws for Live-in relationships but court have recognised certain rights for live-in couples under various existing legal provisions. These include:
Right to cohabit: Adults have the right to live together under Article 21 (Right to life and liberty) of the Constitution.
Protection from domestic violence: The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, can offer protection to women in live-in relationships facing abuse.
Maintenance: Under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, a woman in a live-in relationship can claim maintenance from her partner if she's unable to maintain herself.
Children's rights: If a child is born out of a live-in relationship, the child is entitled to inherit property from both parents under biological parentage.
Live-in relationships are really an important step to modernisation but in this process, is harming our culture which is really dangerous. Being modern means not to ignore your culture. A person always needs to respect its culture to prevent its removal of existence.