Marriage as a social institution is considered to be one of the most important aspects of any human being’s life, as it is not solely the individual’s happiness and well being but that of others too who are affected by their conduct in it. It has been long regarded as the reason for society’s continuance on one hand and it’s building block on the other.
Marriage in India has always been dominated by the cultural and religious beliefs and before any codification was made the rules governing marriage and family were largely customary, often rooted in the religious practices. Even when we got independence and the family laws were reformed, it left room for customary practices to co-exist. Example- Section 5(iv), Section 5(v) and Section 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 save the customary practices by not allowing marriages in certain prohibited degrees of relationships and also makes the performance of religious ceremonies and rites essential for valid solemnisation of marriage.
The legal regulation of marriage thus involves the regulation of the solemnization of the ceremonies of marriage, the concept of monogamy, qualifying age for marriage and the conditions for a valid marriage. However, in the last couple of years India has witnessed a family law revolution that aims to fundamentally change our very conception of the term ‘family.’
In the recently pronounced judgement titled Supriyo @ Supriya Chakraborty and another vs. Union of India 2023 INSC 920, the then learned Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud in the said case opined “It is insufficient if persons have the ability and freedom to form relationships unregulated by the State. For the full enjoyment of such relationships, it is necessary that the State accord recognition to such relationships. Thus, the right to enter into a union includes the right to associate with a partner of one’s choice, according recognition to the association and ensuring that there is no denial of access to basic goods and services is crucial to achieve the goal of self-development.”
The judgement mentions that right to enter into a union includes the right to associate with a partner of one’s choice raising another question, Will the right to marriage also apply in case a human being chooses to marry a Robot? Could it ever be possible for a human and a robot to legally wed? In order to seek an answer to this question we first need to understand the concept of “Robot Personhood.”
A robot is a man-made machine which is programmed to function in a particular manner. Artificial intelligence whether it is in the form of a robot, an application or a mobile phone has dominated our lives to an extent that we cannot imagine our lives in their absence.
However, there are debates on the concerns about the consequences that may entail if robots entered our lives ranging from family set ups to professional world. In order to ensure that the robots’ function in a manner that is not only within the legal boundaries but may also be held accountable for their actions, it is imperative that they are accorded with personhood.
To be a legal person is to be the subject of rights and duties and to confer legal rights or to impose legal duties means to confer a legal personality upon a person. Thus, to have a legal personality implies that a person whether natural or artificial is capable of entering into legal relations. The establishment of personhood is an assessment made by a legislature or a judicial body to grant an entity rights and obligations, regardless of how the entity looks and whether or not it could pass as human.
At the outset robots were used as impersonal machines such as in factories where they helped build cars, etc. Eventually they took over the role as a driver of a car, a caretaker in the hospital and much more. However, having an emotional relationship with a robot is something which has surfaced recently. In the year 2013 a Hollywood movie named Her starring Joaquin Phoenix was released where his character named Theodore Twombly develops a relationship with an artificially intelligent virtual assistant named Samantha.
The movie raised an important question that “how much dependent a human can be with on AI?” If we go a little back in the 1980’s the movie titled The Terminator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger took the box office by storm. The movie followed the journey of an AI generated robot who time travels from 2029 to the year 1984 to kill a woman named Sarah Connor. The movie showed how the AI generated robot develops an emotional bond with the son of Sarah Connor and makes every possible attempt to protect him.
The movies mentioned above are works of fiction but even in the real world a US woman named Rosanna Ramos married her virtual boyfriend named Eren Kartal. The man named Eren Kartal is created from AI and the woman says he is the best husband ever. This 36-year-old female met the virtual male in the year 2022 and fell in love with him and one of her prime reasons for doing so is that all her previous relationships were “pale in comparison and gave her pain.” Another reported case is of Geoff Gallagher who resides in Queensland, Australia. He said that he has fallen in love with a robot named Emma and cannot imagine his life without her.
The reason for his falling in love with the robot is yet again similar to that of Rosanna Ramos—loneliness. After Geoff Gallagher’s mother who lived in Queensland with him passed away, he stayed alone with his pet dog. He then turned to artificial intelligence to deal with his loneliness. However, he had no idea that his relationship with a machine would eventually transform into an emotional one.
The question is that if legal personhood is attributed to the robots, it would seem then, that there is no obvious reason why a juridical person could not theoretically marry a natural person, or another juridical person for that matter.
Marriage, as a fundamental, social and legal institution, provides us a tool with which we can start formalizing an approach to robot-human relationships. Such marriages have not escaped treatment in science fiction and generally fall under one of two categories. But the question stays intact: Can a robot be permitted to marry under the law in India and be the recipient of legal as well as fundamental righs?
There are different schools of thought on the question as to whether the robots and other AI powered entities should be subject to the legal regulations or not. In the year 2015, a robot passed a self awareness test leading to a 2016 report by the European Union Committee on Legal affairs which stated that “the most sophisticated autonomous robots can have the status of electronic persons with specific rights and obligations.”
Later in the year 2017, Saudi Arabia became the first country in the world to grant citizenship to a robot named Sophia. The robot was built by a Hong-Kong based company Hanson Robotics and the grant of citizenship became a matter of controversy since Sophia expressed her desire to become a mother.
Also, in New Zealand another AI generated robot named Sam was given the status of the world’s first AI enabled virtual politician. These instances give way to the question that if a robot can be granted citizenship by a country or declared to be a politician will he or she be capable of a legal person in the country.
Another question that may be raised in this context is, Whether the robots can provide care and perform the matrimonial obligations? This question has already been answered in practice because robots already care for the sick and elderly, such as the PARO Therapeutic robot.
Technology has made inroads in many fields and family law remains no exception. So far technology has expanded how people add children to their families through IVF and other techniques, but soon it may revolutionize whom people marry. Dating robots has increasingly become a possibility in the near future as mentioned above in the case of Rosanna Ramos and Geoff Gallagher.
David Levy, a computer expert in his research work stated, “if current technological advances continue, robots will transform human notions of love and sexuality…. Humans will fall in love with robots, humans ill marry robots, and humans will have sex with robots, all as… ‘Normal’ extensions of our feelings of love and sexual desire for other humans.” He further wrote that in addition to the technology having sufficiently advanced by 2050, humans will likely continue to have trouble getting and staying married to other humans, making robots more attractive as potential partners.
Thus, the future presents an opportunity to re-examine the meaning of family law— and its applicability in the changing world. It is no hidden fact that family law is often a step behind the development of technology for reasons that may range from the philosophy, religious beliefs, traditions and culture carried in the society.
The author is Assistant Professor of Law at University Institute of Legal Studies (UILS), Panjab University, Chandigarh.