Void marriages are invalid from the beginning. These do not require annulment. Under the Hindu Marriage Act, Section 11 states certain situations where the marriage is void. The following are the situations:
- One of the parties has a spouse living at the time of marriage. For example, if Seema was already married to Rajesh during her marriage with Rahul.
- If the parties are within the degrees of prohibited relationship. Customs allow spouses to marry within prohibited relationships in some societies.
- Parties are Sapindas of each other, except in cases where certain customs allow it. A sapinda relationship can be either paternal or maternal.