Guwahati. As many as 4004 cases have been filed in Assam against child marriage.
Notably, Sarma had recently spoken about early marriage in some communities. He also affirmed the government’s strong resolve to end the menace of child marriage in the state.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tweeted “Assam government is firm in its resolve to end the menace of child marriage in the state. So far @assampolice has registered 4,004 cases across the state and more police action is likely in days ahead. Action on the cases will begin starting February 3. I request all to cooperate”.
The data shared by Sarma showed Dhubri district with the highest number of cases of child marriage with 370 cases, followed by Hojai with 255 cases and Udalguri with 235 cases. Dima Hasao has the lowest number of cases of child marriage.
As announced by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the state’s police launched a massive crackdown on people involved in child marriage and arrested at least 1800 persons from different parts of the state.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had on Thursday warned that those marrying girls under 18 years of age will be arrested. CM Sarma also warned that the action against those persons will begin starting Friday.
As per the 1929 Act, marriage of girls below the age of 14 years and boys below the age of 18 years was prohibited.
The Act was amended in 1978 to increase the minimum age to 18 years for females, and 21 years for men. The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 replaced the 1929 Act, with the same minimum age limits.
The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021, passed by the Lok Sabha December 2021, sought to amend the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, to increase the minimum age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 years.
