As per some senior government officials, the centre is planning to make changes in the law so that all the future child marriages will turn illegal. Currently, the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 says that child marriages are valid but voidable if the minor wishes to opt out. However, it’s quite impractical to expect minors to file a complaint seeking for annulment.
The legal age for getting married in India is 18 for females and 21 for males but in many places, minors are married because of dowry and other illogically backward reasons. In such a scenario the present law protects the minors but also expects them to come forward and seek for annulment which is quite impractical.
In order to address the issue, the Union Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry has decided to make amendments in the law so as to turn child marriages “void ab initio” i.e. invalid. The proposal has been approved by the WCD minister Maneka Gandhi and has been sent to the ministry for vetting. After getting cleared by law ministry, it will be moved to the cabinet.
As per the act, a man above 18 who contracts a marriage with a minor girl is punishable with 2 years of imprisonment. However, the law still fails to protect several girls who are sexually exploited by their older husbands.
The information gathered by National Crime Record Bureau suggests that 326 incidents of child marriage were reported. Besides, the 2011 Census revealed that one in every three married women is a minor. Apart from these, there are many such cases which go unreported and the actual number is far high.
Last year Karnataka had become the first Indian state to make child marriages “void ab initio” and now the rest of the country is also going to follow the suit. It’s quite a commendable effort by the Karnataka govt and hopefully, necessary changes and amendments will bring along the much-desired progress that is long overdue.
