Central Idea

• Recently, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking to increase the minimum age of marriage of women in India from 18 years to 21 years. The Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, noted that the power to amend the law lies with Parliament.

Crack Prelims 2023! Talk to our Rankers

The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021

• Amendment to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006: The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021 is a proposed amendment to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, which is an Indian law that prohibits the marriage of children below the age of 18 for girls and 21 for boys.
• Aim to strengthen the existing laws: The bill was introduced in the Indian Parliament in March 2021 with the aim of strengthening the existing law and further protecting the rights of children. Some of the key provisions of the bill include
• Referred to the Standing Committee: But after Opposition MPs demanded greater scrutiny of the Bill, it was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee.

Why the age of marriage of women matters?

• Age of marriage has bearing on maternal mortality rates, fertility levels, nutrition of mother and child, sex ratios, and, on a different register, education and employment opportunities for women.
• It is also argued that other factors such as poverty and health services were far more effective as levers for improving women’s and children’s health and nutritional status.

Some of the key provisions of the Bill

• Making registration of marriages mandatory: The bill proposes to make registration of all marriages, including child marriages, mandatory. This is aimed at improving the implementation of the law and making it easier to track and prevent child marriages.
• Making child marriages voidable: The bill proposes to make child marriages voidable at the option of the contracting party who was a child at the time of marriage. This means that a child who was married before the age of 18 can seek to have the marriage declared void, provided it is done within two years of attaining adulthood.
• Punishment for promoting or permitting child marriage: The bill proposes to increase the punishment for promoting or permitting child marriage. The punishment for such offences will now be imprisonment of up to two years and/or a fine of up to one lakh rupees.

Scrutiny before passing it?

• Despite of the legal age girl married before their 18th birthday: The caution exercised by the Supreme Court and the advice of the Opposition MPs to scrutinise the Bill before passing it is well grounded. This is because, despite the legal age of marriage for women being 18 years, almost 23% of women who were aged between 20 and 24 years in 2019-21 married before their 18th birthday.
• State wise: In fact, in the eastern States of Bihar and West Bengal, the share was over 40% In Assam, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, the share was over 25%. The share was below 10% in Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Uttarakhand, among other States.
• Less no of cases reported despite of high prevalence: Despite such a high share of women marrying before turning 18 years, only 1,050 cases were registered under The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act in 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.
• Question of enforcement gets even bigger: With the Bill proposing to raise the legal age from 18 to 21, the question of enforcement gets even bigger. In India, over 60% of women who were aged between 25 and 29 in 2019-21 married before their 21st birthday. In the eastern States of Bihar and West Bengal, the share was over 70%.

Way ahead

• While laws can be changed, enforcement may remain weak as underage marriages are rarely reported.
• Education, more than wealth, determines women’s marital age
• Better-educated women have had more control over when they should get married for decades now.
• The Data Point also showed that due to awareness and better negotiation powers, younger women have pushed up their median marriage age by many years compared to their mothers and grandmothers.

Conclusion

• Overall, the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021 is an important step towards strengthening the legal framework to prevent child marriages in India and ensuring that children are protected from this harmful practice. However, raising the bar alone may not be sufficient. Enforcement while emphasizing education awareness will be the key.

Mains Question

Q. While laws can be changed, enforcement may remain weak as underage marriages are rarely reported In this light discuss why the age of marriage of women matters?

(Click) FREE 1-to-1 on-call Mentorship by IAS-IPS officers | Discuss doubts, strategy, sources, and more

Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor for UPSC 2024

Attend Now