Child marriage is a serious matter of concern. In India, child marriage is defined as the marriage of males below the age of 21 years with females below 18 years (The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006). The law forbidding child marriages in pre-independent India was put in place in 1929.
The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929, is primarily focused on restraining the solemnisation of child marriages. As per the National Family Health Survey III (2005-06), it is estimated that 46% of women in the age group of 18-29 were married before reaching the legal age of 18.
Even though the country has made progress in indicators related to education, health and employment opportunities, the percentage of women married before the legal age of 18 remains high. In order to prevent child marriage, governments brought into force a more progressive legislation, namely the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006, repealing the Child Marriage Restraint Act (CMRA) of 1929 that prohibits child marriages instead of restraining them as well.
In order to address the issue of child marriage in a comprehensive manner, a National Plan of Action defining objectives, goals and strategies, besides delineating roles of different stakeholders, is required.
Background
Child marriage is a violation of the children’s right to protection, development and participation, in addition to violation of their rights. The scale of such marriages is massive, under-recognised and underreported. Children, especially girls, trapped in such marriages are subjected to violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect.
Despite national laws and international agreements, child marriage remains a real and present threat to human rights, lives and the health of children, especially girls. It is difficult to get accurate data on the extent of child marriages because most of these marriages are not registered and many parents resort to falsifying girls’ ages.
Such acts are made easier in rural areas where not all births are registered. It is a well-recognised fact that child marriage denies children the opportunity to fully develop their potential as healthy, productive and empowered citizens. It robs children of their childhood, entrenching them and their future families in poverty, limiting their life choices, and generating high development costs for communities.
Child Marriages In India
As per the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) data available till 2011, the number of cases registered under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA) 2006 in the year 2009, 2010 and 2011 are 3, 60 and 113 respectively. It is believed that all the cases of child marriages that are solemnised are not reported because according to the most recent data available (NFHS 3, 2005-06), it is estimated that 46% of women in the age group of 18-29 are married before reaching the legal age 18.
It is estimated that there are 23 million child brides in the country — i.e. approximately 40% of the child brides globally. While the rate of child marriage reportedly dropped to 46% in 2006, in some states, the prevalence of child marriages exceeds 50%, with the highest rates found in Bihar (64%), Rajasthan (58%), Jharkhand (60%), Madhya Pradesh (53%), Uttar Pradesh (52%), Chhattisgarh (51%), Andhra Pradesh (56%) and West Bengal (53%).
The problem is worse in rural India as compared to urban areas, with 56 and 29% prevalence, respectively. Data from the fifth edition of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS- 5) shows that 23.3% of women aged 20-24 years were married under the age of 18 compared to 26.8% in NFHS-4. The latest data also shows that 6.8% of women were pregnant between 15-19 years compared to 7.9% in NFHS 4.
According to NFHS-4, the median age of marriage for women in India between the ages of 25 to 49 years is 19.8 in urban areas and 18.1 in rural areas. The lowest median age for women in this category among Hindus is 18.5, followed closely by Muslims at 18.6 years. The median age of marriage among Buddhists is 19.2 years, Sikhs 20.9, Jains 21.2 and Christians 21.6. NFHS-4 data also show that 28% of women aged 18-29 and 17% of men aged 21-29 marry before reaching the legal minimum age of marriage.
The Union government has endeavoured to curb the practice in recent years by repealing the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 and bringing in a more progressive Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, which includes punitive measures against those who perform, permit and promote child marriage. It also provides for annulment of child marriage and gives a separated female the right to maintenance and residence from her husband if he is above 18, or in-laws if he is a minor until she is remarried.
The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929, was replaced by the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, to prohibit the solemnisation of child marriages, but this highly pernicious practice has still not been completely eradicated from society. Hence, there is an urgent need to tackle this societal issue and bring in reforms. We cannot claim progress unless women progress on all fronts, including their physical, mental and reproductive health.
The enactments, inter alia, relating to the age of marriage of parties, such as the Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872; the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936; the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937; the Special Marriage Act, 1954; the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955; and the Foreign Marriage Act, 1969, do not provide for a uniform minimum age of marriage for men and women.
The Constitution guarantees gender equality as part of the fundamental rights and also guarantees prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of sex. The existing laws do not adequately secure the Constitutional mandate of gender equality in marriageable age among men and women. Women are often put in a disadvantageous position in regard to higher education, vocational instruction, attainment of psychological maturity and skill-sets etc.
Entering into the employment sphere and being part of the workforce to make themselves self-dependent before girls get married is a critical area. These disadvantages perpetuate the dependence of women on men. There are also imperatives for lowering maternal mortality rate and infant mortality rate, as well as improvement of nutrition levels and sex ratio at birth, as these would promote possibilities of responsible parenthood for both the parents, making them more capable of taking care of their children.
It is also important to bring down the incidence of teenage pregnancies, which are not only harmful to women’s overall health but also result in more miscarriages and stillbirths. Discrimination against women also comes in the way of achieving Sustainable Development Goals and goes against the principles enunciated under the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, to which India is a signatory.
It is imperative to tackle gender inequality and gender discrimination and to put in place adequate measures to secure the health, welfare and empowerment of our women and girls and to ensure status and opportunity for them at par with men. In order to address the issues of women in a holistic manner as a measure for gender equality, here are a few things that can help: increase the female labour force participation, make women self-reliant, and enable them to make decisions themselves.
The Bill, inter alia, proposes to:
- Amend the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, to reinforce its application overriding all other existing laws, including any custom, usage or practice governing the parties in relation to marriage;
- Bring women at par with men in terms of marriageable age;
- Prohibit child marriage irrespective of any law, custom, usage or practice.
About the author: Saurabh Kumar Singh is a final year law student at the Campus Law Centre, University of Delhi.