Child marriage in Assam: APSC Current Affairs Notes and MCQs

Child Marriage Crackdown and Women’s Empowerment

Current Context (The Trigger)

• Latest drive: The latest crackdown has so far led to 565 arrests and 481 cases in various districts.
• Who was arrested: Grooms and alleged abettors were arrested. The abettors include family members and religious functionaries.
• Since February 2023: The editorial cites official data. The crackdown began in February 2023. Since then, more than 12,000 cases have been registered and over 11,000 arrests made.
• Editorial’s view: The drive should continue. But the law alone is not enough. Girls’ education must be a priority.

Core Concepts & Static GK

• Who is a child: Under the Act, a male who has not completed 21 years and a female who has not completed 18 years is a child. A child marriage is any marriage where either party is a child.
• Voidable, not void: A child marriage is voidable at the option of the party who was a child at the time. Only that party can file the petition for annulment in the district court.
• Time limit: The petition can be filed at any time. But it must be filed before the petitioner completes two years after attaining majority.
• Void in some cases: The marriage is void if the minor was enticed away from the lawful guardian, forced or tricked into leaving a place, or sold for marriage. It is also void if the minor is sold, trafficked or used for immoral purposes after the marriage (Section 12). A child marriage held against a court injunction is void from the start (Section 14).

Constitutional & Legal Framework

• Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006: This is the central law. It replaced the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929. Section 2(a) defines a child. Section 3 makes child marriages voidable.
• Punishments: An adult male above eighteen who contracts a child marriage faces rigorous imprisonment up to two years, a fine up to one lakh rupees, or both (Section 9).
• Others who can be punished: This covers anyone who performs, conducts, directs or abets a child marriage. They face rigorous imprisonment up to two years and a fine up to one lakh rupees (Section 10). Parents, guardians and others who promote or permit it, or negligently fail to stop it, are also liable (Section 11).
• Women and imprisonment: Under Section 11, no woman can be punished with imprisonment.
• Nature of offence: Offences under the Act are cognizable and non-bailable (Section 15).
• Court injunction: A Judicial Magistrate of the first class or a Metropolitan Magistrate can stop a child marriage (Section 13). This applies when the marriage has been arranged or is about to take place.

Institutional Machinery

• Child Marriage Prohibition Officer (CMPO): The State Government appoints this officer by notification in the Official Gazette (Section 16).
• CMPO duties: The officer prevents child marriages and collects evidence for prosecution. The officer also counsels residents and creates awareness.
• CMPO and the court: The CMPO can move the court for orders, including an injunction. The CMPO can also move the court for annulment along with the child.

Schemes & Initiatives

• Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat: Union Minister for Women and Child Development Annapurna Devi launched this national campaign in New Delhi on 27 November 2024.
• Child Marriage Free Bharat Portal: It was launched with the campaign. Citizens can use it to report incidents, file complaints and get information about CMPOs across the country.

Reports, Indices & Data

• NFHS-5 in Assam: In Assam, 31.8 per cent of women aged 20-24 had married before 18. Assam’s NFHS-5 data carry the label 2019-20, and the editorial says the survey was done between 2019 and 2020.
• National comparison: The national figure in NFHS-5 is 23.3 per cent. The national survey as a whole ran over 2019-21.
• Earlier round: In NFHS-4 (2015-16), the Assam figure was 30.8 per cent. So the share rose slightly in NFHS-5.

Assam & Northeast Linkages

• Western Assam: The editorial says child marriage is especially common in some pockets of western Assam. It blames the backwardness of these areas and poor access to schooling for girls.
• Health link: In the editorial’s view, Assam’s high infant and maternal mortality is closely tied to early marriage.
• Courts: The editorial notes that courts stepped in against sweeping arrests of couples who had married years ago and now have children.

Introduction

Assam has run a statewide crackdown on child marriage since February 2023. The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 treats a female below 18 and a male below 21 as a child. The Assam Tribune editorial argues that arrests must be backed by education and women’s empowerment.

Why Enforcement Is Needed

• High prevalence: NFHS-5 found that 31.8 per cent of women aged 20-24 in Assam married before 18. The national figure is 23.3 per cent.
• Deterrence: The editorial expects the arrests of grooms and abettors to deter others. These abettors include family members and religious functionaries.
• Legal backing: The offences are cognizable and non-bailable. Magistrates can issue injunctions before a wedding takes place.

Limits of an Enforcement-Only Approach

• Past marriages: The editorial sees no point in acting against couples who married years ago and now live with their children.
• Court concern: It also notes that courts had stepped in against arrests it calls indiscriminate and irrational.
• Root causes remain: The editorial links the practice to poor access to education, especially for girls, in some pockets.
• Supreme Court guidance: On 18 October 2024, the Supreme Court issued guidelines on implementing the 2006 Act. It was a PIL filed by the NGO Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action. The Court said enforcement should not focus only on prosecution. It should also work to prevent the offence.

Education, Empowerment and Health Links

• Education: The editorial says a girl who is educated is less likely to be forced into early marriage.
• Economic empowerment: In its view, women’s economic empowerment can bring the numbers down further.
• Health outcomes: It ties child marriage to high infant and maternal mortality in Assam.

Government & Statutory Measures

Way Ahead

• Targeted enforcement: Keep acting against those who arrange fresh child marriages. As the editorial suggests, avoid arresting couples who married long ago.
• Information and advocacy: The editorial calls for steady public messaging on the harm of early marriage.
• Girls’ education first: The editorial wants the government to make education a priority, especially in backward pockets.
• Economic empowerment: Raise the status of women in vulnerable sections, for example through livelihood support.
• Use CMPOs and the portal: Make the CMPO the first point of contact for prevention and awareness. Publicise the Child Marriage Free Bharat Portal for reporting cases.

Conclusion

Arrests can deter, but they cannot change the conditions that push girls into early marriage. Lasting change needs schools, jobs and health care for women alongside the law.