To ensure that commercialisation of weddings is brought to an end in the city, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday ordered the owner of a “so-called” gurdwara to stop solemnising illegal marriages.

The owner, Gurmeet Singh, has been directed to give an undertaking to the court that in future he will not solemnise any marriage from his living room, which he had converted into a gurdwara. Singh has been given two weeks’ time to give the undertaking.

Justice L N Mittal was shocked to learn that Singh had installed Guru Granth Sahib in his living room, which he was using to exploit runaway couples and issue them marriage certificates.

Justice Mittal pointed out that such things are taking place with the help of advocates. Supporting the observation, senior standing counsel for UT Administration, advocate Anupam Gupta said: “It is a professional network. There is a racket for solemnising marriages in Chandigarh. Lawyers are exploiting runaway couples and charging commission from them.”

Expressing surprise over the modus operandi used by Singh, Justice Mittal said: “Can he run a gurdwara from his house and issue marriage certificates?”

Gupta, meanwhile, said Guru Granth Sahib can be installed for worship but not for solemnising marriages.

Singh not only used to get quick marriage certificates but also wedding clothes for the couples. The charges varied from Rs 4,000 to Rs 10,000, as per the demands of the runaway couples from Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

The clientele of Singh, who originally belongs to Haryana, increased so rapidly that on an average, three to four petitions filed in the High Court by runaway couples carried marriage certificates issued by him.

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