The Rajasthan Congress government led by Ashok Gehlot has passed the ‘Compulsory Registration of Marriages Amendment bill of Rajasthan’ on Friday, September 17. By clearing the passage of the aforementioned bill to register child marriage, the Congress government has allowed the registration of child marriages in the state.
According to the bill, if the girl is under the age of 18 at the time of the wedding and the boy is under the age of 21, the parents must notify the registration officer within 30 days by furnishing a memorandum to the officer in the prescribed format. The concerned authority will begin the registration process based on the information provided.
Rajasthan government’s decision to pass the contentious bill to register child marriage faces strong opposition from all quarters
The opposition strongly objected to the Congress government’s decision. During the Parliament proceeding, BJP, the assembly’s main opposition party, questioned why there is a need for registration and what the bill’s purpose is if child marriage remains illegal. Furious BJP MLAs then walked out of the House. Before the bill was passed, BJP demanded voting on it, but the chairman ignored it. The bill was passed by voice vote.
Independent MLA Sanyam Lodha, once a close aide of Ashok Gehlot, expressed strong opposition to the former’s decision, saying that the Bill “justifies child marriage, it is unjust, and it is against the people.”
“There is now an abundance of people who educate their children and don’t like child marriages. But if you justify child marriages, this will send a wrong marriage before the nation. The Rajasthan Assembly will be humiliated before the entire nation,” added Lodha.
Leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria said that the state is formulating a law that is against the Child Marriage Act. “Back then too, you had used the same words as now…you are authorising minor kids to get married. The only restriction is that their kin have to inform within 30 days.”
“We made a mistake once and now we are repeating it,” Kataria said and apologised for the 2009 Act saying that he was a member of the Assembly back then too. “If minor kids get married and the state gives them a certificate as per law then how is this correct?” Kataria lashed out.
Furthermore, social activist, Dr Kriti Bharti, the managing director of Saarthi Trust in Jodhpur, who has successfully annulled scores of child weddings in recent years, also criticised the contentious bill. Bharti said the bill exposes the state government’s “double standards”.
The activist tore into the Congress government in the state saying: “While the rest of the world is trying to eliminate child marriages, the Rajasthan government is actively promoting it. This is only to appease the Jati Panches, who is the party’s vote banks.”
Rajasthan Govt justifies the contentious bill
Despite facing so much resentment, the Ashok Gehlot went on to justify its outlandish decision. Parliamentary Affairs minister Shanti Dhariwal replied in the Assembly that the Bill “nowhere says that underage marriages will be legal.”
“Even if a marriage among underage children is held, its registration is mandatory. However, the Bill doesn’t make the marriage legal and the District Collector can take action against them,” Dhariwal said.
He added that the Bill doesn’t go against the central Act either. He also said that in 2006, the Supreme Court had ruled that registering the marriage is mandatory, whether one is minor or not.
Child marriage prohibited in India
It may be noted that there has been a law in India against child marriages for the last 90 years. The previous law, the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929, only included measures for preventing or prohibiting child marriages, not for restraining solemnization. As a result of the ineffectiveness of the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929, new legislation to replace it was enacted on 1 November 2007 in India and the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 came into force. The current law serves three purposes: it prevents child marriages, protects children involved in the marriages, and prosecutes perpetrators.
Child marriage is now a cognizable and non-bailable offence under this statute. The court can order an injunction to prevent the marriage from taking place, and if the marriage takes place after the injunction, the marriage will be considered null and void. The act of performing, conducting, or abetting a child marriage is likewise punishable under this statute. Parents will be held liable if they encourage or promote child marriage,