Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Feb 07, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version
Online edition of India's National Newspaper Thursday, Feb 07, 2008 ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version |
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New Delhi: The Law Commission has suggested that the marriageable age for boys and girls be fixed uniformly at 18. At present it is 18 for girls and 21 for boys. The panel has also proposed that marriage of both girls and boys, under 18, be prohibited and that marriages at an age below 16 be made void. The Commission, headed by Justice A.R. Lakshmanan in its 205th report submitted to Union Law Minister H.R. Bhardwaj here on Wednesday, proposed that marriages of girls and boys aged between 16 and 18 be made voidable at the option of either party by a court decree. The Commission examined the issue at the instance of the Supreme Court in a pending writ petition and forwarded its suggestion in December 2007. The panel studied the changes to the Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929, with reference to the age of marriage and age of consent for sexual intercourse, and judgments which upheld the validity of child marriage through the years. Opposing child marriage, the report says it will stunt the growth and development, particularly of the girl who is the more vulnerable partner. Child marriage may often result in early pregnancy, and complications during childbirth and both maternal and infant mortality are common. The report notes that child marriage results in child labour at home and young girls have very little decision-making powers. Child marriage renders girls more vulnerable to domestic violence and sexual abuse. It also deprives the girl of her right to obtain education and live a life of freedom and dignity. To ensure that young women and children born of child marriages are not left destitute, the provisions on maintenance and custody should apply to both voided and voidable marriage. Registration of marriages of all communities should be made compulsory within a stipulated period. Further, the report says the age for sexual consent should be raised from 15 to 16 for all girls, regardless of marriage. (At present a male having sex with a minor “wife” aged below 15 is punishable under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code.) On studying the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, the Commission found that the present law did not make a child marriage invalid even if the girl was under 15. But under the criminal law, Section 375 of the IPC says it is a crime to have sexual relations with a child under 15.
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