Child Marriages – Efficacy of Prohibition in India
keywords – child marriages, prohibition of child marriage
Written By – Mansi Gupta
The article seeks to provide analysis on the Prohibition laws to restrain child marriages in India, as to how far the legislative laws in India, have been successful in achieving the desired goals. Child marriages have been prevalent in India for centuries now. The condition of rural India is, even more, worse than that of urban India. Girl children particularly in rural areas are more affected than their urban counterparts. India has the 14th highest rate of child marriage in the world, according to the International Center for Research on Women.
The states with the highest rates of child marriage (50% and above) are Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. According to a recent survey the worst state for child marriage is Bihar, where nearly 70% of women in their early twenties reported having been married by the age of 18; the best is Himachal Pradesh at 9%.
Notwithstanding stringent laws and enactments to hold back child marriage, penal provisions , we are all aware that it is still an ongoing process. There must be strong reasons that despite The Child Marriage Prohibition Act even now India has not been able to eradicate this practice completely.
The major reasons for such a long-lasting prevelant of child marriages
1. Cultural & religious rituals/customs: specially in rural villages, and primitive areas the custom of getting child marriages fixed at the time of birth is still practiced. It also absolves them from the liability of settling their children. Strong caste ties specifically in some communities of our society limit the availability of suitable marital partners which adds pressure on parents to look for match as early as possible.
2. Lack of Safety and sense of security: specially in earlier times when our law and order system was not so tight and strict there was lack of safety & absence of sense of security specially for the parents of a girl child.
3. Inadequate infrastructure, lack of transport facility also concerns about girls’ safety while travelling to school consequently contribute to keeping girls out of school
4. Social pressure in economically weaker sections of society, a girl child is still believed to be a liability/burden on family expressly in economically weaker sections of society, as she will not look after or fend her family when she grows up, and gets married.
5. Gender bias, girls are still considered as weaker sex, with a limited role to perform household chores and to abide with her matrimonial duties including giving heir to the family. Despite having stringent enactment for Prohibition on dowry given at time of marriage of girl to the groom and his family members, it is still a common ritual for parents of girls in India. The amount of dowry increases with the age and the education level of the girl.
6. Lack of education, illiteracy and lesser vocation avenues specially in rural area
7. Poverty are amongst the few reasons for early child marriage. Child marriages had always been a major concern for the development of any Country particularly developing Countries like India.
Thus, as a policy to prohibit the solemnization of child marriages in the country, The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 was passed on 28th September 1929. The act fixed the marriageable age for girls at 14 years and 18 years for boys.
It is also popularly known as the Sharda Act named after famous Judge, politician Harbilas Sarda, who had initially conceived The Child Marriage Restraint Act. It was later replaced by The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006. The Act of 2006 criminalizes the support of child marriages in India. It also protects and provides assistance to the victims of child marriages. The Act further provides for rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, along with a fine in several cases, which may extend to rupees one lakh.
The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021 seeks to increase the minimum age of marriage for females to 21 years. The Bill was referred to the Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth, and Sports on December 21, 2021. However it is yet to see light of day.
It has been a known fact that child marriages are still a phenomena, more so in rural and primitive areas in India so much so that a legislative enactment being in force has not been able to eradicate this taboo completely nor create fear in minds of people, parent’s and children who commit this social evil.
However, it goes without saying that the graph of child marriages had seen a steep down fall over the years.
The Urban versus Rural Disparity
In urban areas the rate of child marriage had always been very low since independence, as compared to the graph of child marriage in any rural areas of India. Some of the reasons being :
1 Fear of legislative interventions and active administration and enforcement of laws
2. Penal provisions accompanying penalty and imprisonment.
3. Active role of police, charitable institutions, NGO’s in creating social, economic, moral, physiological awareness and pressure amongst parents, children and other family members.
4. Dynamic and active role of global media, electronic media, press
5. Better educational and personal growth opportunities
6. More Job avenues/options
7. Better Safety, security and accommodating infrastructure
We can say, that to much extent The Child Marriage Restraint Act has been successful in restricting child marriages in developed cities and metros of India. In rural and deprived areas also The legislative enactment has been successful in bringing down the percentage of child marriage. However the progress has been slow and steady.
It has been further observed in any society that only legislative interventions are not suffice to bring a change in Society for the growth, development and betterment of its people, but several other factors are also involved. Unless and until every citizen of the country, undertakes to contribute in Prohibition of Child Marriage, the Country cannot bring the change.
Suggested reforms to curb Child Marriages
Few major reforms to counter the violation and to erase and wipe out child marriage from India could be
- Proactive role of police and strict enforcement of legislative laws specially in urban areas
- Effective initiatives/ drives by social and charitable institutions to curb the menace of child marriage from root.
- Easy and extensive access to electronic and press media to bring awareness amongst people about the disadvantages of early marriages.
- Global media, press, advertisements and awareness programs
- Several incentives and schemes can be initiated by Govt to encourage and promote education amongst children of school going age, which will further help in bringing down the percentage of child marriages,
- Providing better infrastructure,
- Growth and rise in career and employment opportunities
- Govt can also enforce the Prohibition by curtailing and restricting benefits to those families who indulge in child marriage.
- Unified civil code can further help in putting a brake on child marriages, because of the fact that in some religions the marriageable age of a girl is still below 18.
- The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (2006) should be amended to make child marriage void ab initio.
- Presence of a proper, effective administrative system that verifies the age of the parties to marriage at the time of registration.
National Commission of Women had introduced a draft for Compulsory Registration of Marriage Bill, and recently it has been recommended by the law commission to amend the Registration of Birth and Death Act, 1969 and which will make registration of marriage mandatory. One of the primary objectives of this Bill was to ensure that the number of child marriages in India is prevented and therefore decreased. Unfortunately the Bill is still pending in the Parliament.
Needless to say, that apart from legal reforms, collective efforts and initiatives by its fellow citizens are a must to bring a change in any Society.
