Assam child marriage crackdown: 2,273 held in 3 days, situation tense as protests continue
With over 4,074 cases of child marriage registered in Assam, the Assam Police continued with its crackdown.
In the state for the third day in a row and arrested over 2,200 people for marrying minor girls or facilitating such marriages till Sunday.
THE CABINET DECISION
The arrests come in the wake of the Assam Cabinet’s decision to book men who marry girls aged below 14 under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Those who marry girls in the age group of 14-18 years will be tried under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.
The offenders will be arrested and the marriages declared illegal.
Chief Minister Himanta Sarma Biswa said men marrying girls below 14 years of age will be facing non-bailable charges, while those marrying girls between 14 and 16 years of age will be charged under bailable sections. If the groom is below 14 years of age, he will be sent to a reform house.
WHY THE DECISION?
The move introduced by the Assam Cabinet aims to curb child marriages and early motherhood in the state. According to reports by the National Family Health Survey, Assam has a high rate of maternal and infant mortality rates, with child marriage being the primary cause.
An average of 31 per cent of marriages registered in the state are in the prohibited age group, the NFHS had noted. As per National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) 2019-21, around 11.7 per cent of the women between 15-19 years of age in Assam were already mothers or pregnant at the time of the survey.
THE ACTION SO FAR
On Saturday, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted that the drive against child marriage would continue till the next assembly elections in 2026. He had said parents involved in underage marriages are currently being let off with a notice.
Over 4,074 cases of child marriages have been registered in the district while Assam Police have arrested 2,278 people for either marrying minor girls or solemnizing child marriages.
Sarma also took to his Twitter account, sharing data of the child marriages registered across the district. Sarma said he has asked the police to show zero tolerance in child marriage cases.
The Assam CM said they have identified over 8,000 people, who have married minor girls or facilitated child marriages. Apart from the over 2,200 people who have been arrested, Sarma said action would be taken against 3,500 more people.
Sarma has even asserted that the drive against child marriage will continue till the next assembly elections in 2026.
Till Sunday evening, at least 139 people were apprehended in Biswanath, followed by 130 in Barpeta and 126 in Dhubri, said a statement issued by the Assam Police.
Other districts where over 100 arrests have been made are Baksa (123) and Bongaigaon and Hojai (117 each), it maintained.
DISTRICTS AFFECTED THE MOST
At least 139 people have been apprehended in Biswanath, followed by 130 in Barpeta and 126 in Dhubri.
Dhubri registered the highest number of FIRs against child marriages at 374 cases, followed by Hojai at 255 and Morigaon at 224. Other districts where over 100 arrests have been made are Baksa (123) and Bongaigaon and Hojai (117 each).
THE REACTION
The Assam government may have introduced a move with the right intentions in mind, but it has definitely not gone down well with women in Assam, especially those from Dhubri — the district with the highest number of child marriage cases in the state.
A large number of women descended to the streets of Dhubri on Saturday as police came to arrest their husbands and sons. The women gathered in front of Tamarha police station and demanded the release of their family members.
Even AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi hit out at the Assam CM asking what would be in store for the minor girls, whose husbands have been apprehended and put behind bars. He slammed Sarma for being ‘biased’ and said the move is an ‘administrative failure’ of the state as the BJP-led government is taking such an action after ruling Assam for six years.