Abstract
One of the most essential social structures is marriage, which really is a method of obtaining a family through which civilization may continue to exist. Ceremonies and rituals are used to symbolize this social practice. 81.4 percent of women between the ages of 15 and 49, the main child-bearing years, are married.[1] Due to the lower female marriageable age in many sections of the country, this ratio remains high. The vast majority of women who marry before the age of 18 are mostly from impoverished or below poverty line households. Domestic abuse and health issues affect over 80% of girls. Pregnant girls under the age of 18 are more prone to have complications, and there have been cases of fatalities. Symptoms of sexual abuse and post-traumatic stress disorder in child brides include feelings of despair, impotence, and chronic depression. The purpose of this research would be to discuss the current state of child marriage in India as well as recent breakthroughs.
Keywords
Child marriage, women, poverty, sexual abuse, rights, united nations
Introduction
Early marriage of children, especially girls, is popular in more than 40 nations. A large number of these countries have signed several international treaties guaranteeing various rights for children and women, including the requirement of 18 year old legal minimum age for marriage. Despite this, a whopping 62 percent of women are wedded by the time they attained the age of 18. According to a UNICEF report (2005), the proportion of girls aged 15 to 19 years old is at an all-time high. Mostly because of belief systems, community traditions, financial conditions, and blind beliefs, the issue of child marriage within India is complicated. People talk about just the physical violence that occurs during one child marriage, but they overlook some of its most important aspects of health: mental health. Child brides frequently struggle with anxiety and melancholy, and they may find little sympathy or emotional support in their new family. They are primarily compelled to work in the home and give birth to a child. Any declaration of right or expression of a viewpoint was viewed as a challenge, and those who did so were subjected to bodily or mental assault. Since these young females are compelled to quit school and marry at a young age, they lose their freedom of movement and hence their friendship. This is a major source of anxiety. These young girls lose their freedom since every part of their lifestyle is scrutinised, including what they wear, where they can go, and also who they meet, resulting in a perpetual feeling of fear that they might breach the norms and also be punished. In short, if those girls are upset by their mental health, they aren’t cared for, but rather penalised, and their health suffers as a result. It is difficult to track down the roots of child marriage in medieval India since there are no references to the practice. Child marriage is more common in a few northern communities than those in the south. Despite the fact that there have been no documented traces to wherever the practice of child marriage began, there is proof that ancient texts opposed the early marriage. The term “child marriage” is used in research to allude to a style of philosophy that relates the emergence of a custom of child marriage to the introduction of various forms of culture from the north. These factors may have motivated some cultures to resort to early marriages as a means of protecting their daughters from being kidnapped or harmed by intruders.[2]
One of the most pressing issues in Indian society is child marriage. Despite modified legislation establishing 18 as the legal minimum age, for female marriage in India, a significant proportion of teenage girls in the 15–19 year age bracket are married, and every second married teenager has given birth to a child. Rajasthan seems to have the maximum (40.8) percentage of women ever wedded among 15-19 year old girls, as per the Registrar General of India Report of 2001. In India, child marriage has indeed been practised for generations, with children being wedded off well before reaching physical and mental age. In India, the problem of child marriage is complicated by faith practices, social customs, economic factors, and strongly rooted stereotypes. Regardless of its origins, child marriage is a grave violation of human rights that leaves permanent physical, psychological, and emotional scars. The sexual activity begins shortly after marriage, and pregnancy and childbirth at a young age might result in maternal and newborn death. Furthermore, women who married while they are younger are more likely to encounter domestic abuse at home.
This activity also contravenes United Nations accords adopted since 1948 on the legal age for marriage and the protection of children from sexual abuse. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW,1979) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC, 1989) are two of them. Many powers are conferred by the CRC, such as freedom of expression (Article 13), the right not to be separated from their parents against their will (Article 9), the right to education (Articles 28 and 29), the right to rest and leisure, as well as the right to engage in play and recreational activities (Articles 31), and the right to protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (Article 34).[3] Such an important general assembly has India as being one of the participants. Nonetheless, the situation of India’s girl children, especially in terms of early marriages, stays dire. The practise has shown little sign of abating and has only dropped somewhat. In many regions of rural India, it still exists.
The purpose of this research is to investigate the socioeconomic situations of child families, to identify the elements that impact child marriages, and to consider the consequences of child marriage. This article also attempts to examine the legal and constitutional provisions prohibiting child marriage, as well as their execution. as well as a study of the recent bill that was passed by the Rajasthan state in support of child marriages. This paper will also propose ways for maximising the effectiveness of existing preventative measures and encouraging the development of alternative methods for preventing child marriage.
Research Methodology
The research study is largely collected from secondary sources that may be found on the internet. The analysis is focusing on stories in the media and films shared on social media about child marriage in various parts of the world. the relevant information contained in newspaper versions and online news portals To hunt for occurrences connected to child marriage in the current circumstances, the social media and online sources have been adjusted throughout, including Google searches and Google alerts. In addition, the government of India’s bulletins, orders, and instructions, as well as those issued by international conventions and ministries, are referred to. Furthermore, research articles focusing on the subject have been cited.
Review of Literature
There have been multiple types of research on child marriage accessible. The majority of them seem to be statistical in form, using the average age at marriage as a reference for child marriage and examining its correlations such as particular groups’ or households’ education and economic backwardness, as well as some of their social and cultural traits. These research papers don’t go beyond mere connections or relationships to find the root consequences of child marriage.
Child marriages occur in primitive societies in which the Nagnika notion was dominant, according to Saraswat (2006). The family was told that if they did not marry off their daughters before they reached puberty, they would go to hell. Prior to marriage, Indian tradition places great value on virginity. This is true for both males and females to a certain extent. One of the simplest ways to accomplish premarital purity in a society that values it is to marry young women even when they are still adolescents. [4]
Early marriage is linked to a range of social, health, and financial drawbacks. While there isn’t enough evidence to say whether early marriage causes these negative outcomes on its own, studies of the links among early marriage, economic hardship, low levels of education, and other factors in multiple configurations have discovered that wedded girls are more likely to have regular unsecured sexual encounters. ‘Marriage dramatically increases the likelihood and pressures of childbearing. The first-time mothers below 16, in addition to the normal risks and responsibilities of childbearing, face an increased risk of maternal and infant mortality as per Miller and Lester (2003).[5]
According to Haberland and Bracken, (2004), When compared with men or single women, married women have limited access to education, fewer or no peer relationships, lack of mobility, and less exposure to mainstream media such as television, radio, and newspapers. [6]
In India, the average age at which girls marry has risen somewhat over time. Nonetheless, it remains far less than that of the legal age, and a huge number of females are still married at very young ages, Rajan & Karkal (1989). High birth rates, grinding poverty and hunger, high illiteracy and infant mortality, and low life expectancy, particularly among rural women, are some of the issues. Mr. Burns (1998). [7]
The term “child marriage” refers to a wide range of socioeconomic settings. There seem to be betrothals of young boys and girls taking place, many of whom are sleeping and unconscious about what is going on. Furthermore, if their children are of different genders, two families can vow to organize the wedding of innocent fetuses. There are indeed teen weddings that are completed a few years later, as opposed to marriages that are consummated about a decade and a half later. Srivastava,(1983).[8]
Notwithstanding legislation to the contrary, early marriage is still the custom, and younger women are put under a huge amount of pressure to have a child when they are married. Teenagers who engage in sexual activity early on in life are more likely to get Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), such as HIV/AIDS. One of the main factors contributing to death in India is early marriage and pregnancy. Yadav, (2006)[9]
What is Child Marriage
Child marriage is an important phenomenon that occurs in various Indian civilizations, in which a small child (typically a girl under the age of fifteen) marries an elderly man. The other type of child marriage is when the parents of both the two youngsters (girl and boy) plan a future marriage between them. The parties (the boy and girl) would not interact until they are of marrying age, at which point the wedding reception is done.[10] Males must be 21 years old to marry, while females must be 18 years old. Child marriage is defined by several treaty bodies and international agencies as “any marriage in which at least one of the parties is under the age of 18.” The majority of the time, the child involved is a young girl, while the husband could also be a child as discussed above.[11]
Gender disparity, social standards, females’ perceived low status, poverty, poor education, security concerns for female children, and sexuality control are all thought to be factors in the high occurrence of child marriages. Girls in remote regions are much more impacted than their peers in large cities.
International Framework
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) claimed in 2012 that around 400 million women aged 20 to 49 had wedded prior to attaining the age of 18. There have been presently various human rights statements in the international legal framework that place indirectly or directly duties on States where early marriage still happens to achieve the practice’s elimination. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979) (CEDAW) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)[12] (CRC) are two international treaties that aim to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women.
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) seems to be the only international human rights treaty that expressly outlaws underage marriages. Article 16 paragraph 2 of the Convention claims that “the betrothal and the marriage of a child shall have no legal effect, and all necessary action, including legislation, shall be taken to specify a minimum age for marriage and to make the registration of marriages in an official registry compulsory”. The treaty-monitoring Committee for Women’s Convention recognizes countries to establish a minimum marriageable age of 18 years both for men and women, despite the fact that the Convention does not stipulate one. Only CEDAW expressly outlaws child marriages, The CRC defines a child as “every human being below the age of 18 years”. thus adolescents under the age of 18 are covered by the Convention and have all of the rights entrenched in it. The respective Committees have classified child marriage as just a dangerous and vile practise that causes physical, mental, or sexual injury or suffering, as well as a detrimental impact on victims’ ability to recognise and exercise all of their rights.
Legal Status of Child Marriage in India
Due to the apparent inefficacy of the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929[13], newer legislation was introduced in the format of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act of 2006[14]. The Law makes it easier to prohibit child marriages by imposing harsher penalties such as two years in prison and/or a fine of Rs. 1 lakh. If a male is under the age of 21 as well as a female is under the age of 18[15], the person is considered a juvenile. According to the Majority Act, a minor is someone who has not reached the age of majority.
In this statute, there are provisions for the girl child’s support, i.e., if the husband is a major, he is compelled to pay the support. If the spouse is a minor, his parents will be responsible for child support. A child marriage’s legal status can be revoked at the parties’ discretion. The marriage would indeed be invalid if somehow the consent was obtained through fraud, deception, or enticement of the child away from his authorised custodians, and the primary intention was to utilise the child for human trafficking or other immoral reasons.[16] The Act also provides for the establishment of a Child Marriage Prohibition Officer, whose responsibilities include preventing child weddings and raising awareness about them[17].
The wedding of a girl under the age of eighteen as well as a male under the age of 21 years is deemed a cognizable offence under Sections 9, 10, and 11 of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 (PCMA).
The Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages Act, 2009[18] was enacted to combat the threat of child marriage in Rajasthan as well as provide safety to a bride. Section 3 tends to make it mandatory to sign up each marriage solemnised among Indian citizens in the state of Rajasthan; however, Section 11 says that no wedding will henceforth be null and void simply because it has never been registered underneath the said Act.
Lately, Rajasthan’s State Legislature has enacted the Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which amends the Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages Act, 2009. Sections 2, 5, 8, and 15 of the Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages Act, 2009 would be amended by the 2021 Bill.
The incorporation of the definitions of additional district marriage registration officer and blocking marriage registration officer is envisaged in Section 2(f) of the 2009 Act, which deals with the nomination of the district magistrate registration officer.[19]
The exact nomination of an additional district marriage registration officer and block marriage registration officer is suggested under Section 5 of the 2009 Act, and certain certification may indeed be completed either through order published in The Gazette or by name or under an additional district marriage registration officer’s and block marriage registration officer’s office.[20]
Section 8 of the 2009 Act has indeed been changed to require the parents and guardians of both the parties to a marriage to file the marriage at the office of the registrar under whose authority the wedding did take place if the bridegroom and bride have not hit the age of maturity. The new proposal also provides that even if either or both of the parties to a marriage die, the remaining party, the parents, the adult child, or the guardians of the concerned parties, as the case may be, could submit a memorandum for marriage registration.[21]
Section 15 has been amended for the existing expression “district marriage registration officer” and before the existing punctuation marks “.-”, the expression “and the other officers” shall be inserted.[22]
However, this bill contradicts sections 3 and 9 of the prohibition of the child marriage act 2006.
Suggestions and Conclusion
Eliminating early marriage is a good place to start. The findings of this research consider the following techniques for dealing with this issue:
- Examine the customs surrounding early marriage. Parents, community members, and youth should be informed about the dangers of early marriage.
- Establish a supportive environment of (religious) leaders and educators who could really help girls deal with their families. Enhance early marriage education for healthcare and social workers, empowering them to act as advocates and influencers in local diverse communities.
- To eliminate early marriage, develop and promote community partnerships and alliances with girls organizations, teachers, elders, local officials, women and youth groups, community and religious leaders, and others.
- Enhance the involvement of the legal system, especially the police, judges, and prosecutor’s offices, by providing training on how to implement the legislation against early marriage.
- To retain girls in school, create robust support services. Scholarships should be provided if appropriate, and educators should be encouraged to assist girls.
- Invite advanced professional women to speak to girls in their community as positive examples and sources of inspiration.
- Furthermore, given the circumstances that lead to child marriages, all steps should be taken to reform families’ and society’s gender specific views by providing good education on the one side and alleviating poverty on another.
- Closing legal loopholes is a critical step in reducing child marriages in the studied locations. To tighten the severe penalties against individuals who violate the law, gaps should be filled.
- The authorities in the thanas must be willing to uphold the law prohibiting child marriage at the operational levels. Child Marriage Prevention Officers must be nominated, or if already in place, they must be instructed to be diligent and undertake harsh measures against violators.
- Specialized units should be established at the local level to deal especially with incidents of child marriages. Specialized units must be established in the study states as well as other areas where this social evil is prevalent. Keeping a close eye on village weddings could help to restrict the amount of these incidents in the region.
- In cases of child marriage, NGOs should indeed be granted the power to notify and act with the support of district magistrates, police, or other social workers.
- At the local level, the press may take a constructive role in promoting awareness about child marriages. Organizations can make child marriages in the communities public so that NGOs, district magistrates, and CMPOs can intervene. They could even notify such incidents to the local cops as a preventative measure.
- One element that was consistently identified as a causal factor for child marriage in the research area was poverty. Despite the fact that a lot of poverty reduction and job creation programmes have been implemented, many individuals continue to live in poverty. Poverty has always disproportionately harmed women and children. As a result, there is an immediate need to address the problem of poverty in these afflicted areas.
- Elected representatives of the people, such as parliamentarians, state legislature, and municipal governments, play an important role because they contact with the public on a routine basis. They should indeed be informed about the need of speaking out against child marriage. Authorities should keep a close eye on the implementation of Human Rights Conventions such as the CRC, CEDAW, and other relevant accords at the state level.
Child marriage is indeed an obvious breach of human rights, as well as all applicable laws, regulations, and community programs must address the problem. Regardless of their social or financial conditions, all children have a right to care and protection, as well as the chance to develop and flourish to their maximum potential. Child marriage is a flagrant breach of all of these rights, and all parties must work together to put an end to it as soon as possible.
Name:- Shivansh Gupta
College:- Vivekananda Institute of Professional studies
Course:- BBA.LLB(Hons)Year:-2nd ye
[1] Censusindia.gov.in. 2022. Census of India: Age Structure And Marital Status. [online] Available at: <https://www.censusindia.gov.in/census_and_you/age_structure_and_marital_status.aspx> [Accessed 8 January 2022].
[2] Vivaaha.org. 2022. Child Marriage. [online] Available at: <http://www.vivaaha.org/child.htm> [Accessed 8 January 2022].
[3] Ohchr.org. 2022. [online] Available at: <https://ohchr.org/Documents/ProfessionalInterest/crc.pdf> [Accessed 8 January 2022].
[4] ResearchGate, B. Suresh Lal, 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278022723_Child_Marriage_in_India_Factors_and_Problems> [Accessed 8 January 2022].
[5] ibid
[6] ibid
[7] ibid
[8] ibid
[9] ibid
[10] Blog, R. and Child marriage in India (Amendment) bill, 2., 2022. Child marriage in India (Amendment) bill, 2021. [online] Times of India Blog. Available at: <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/myblogpower/child-marriage-in-india-amendment-bill-2021-37786/> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[11] UPSC Buddy. 2022. Essay on Child Marriage for Students in English [Easy Words*]. [online] Available at: <https://upscbuddy.com/child-marriage-essay/> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[12] Ohchr.org. 2022. OHCHR | Convention on the Rights of the Child. [online] Available at: <http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CRC.aspx> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[13] Wcd.nic.in. 2022. [online] Available at: <http://wcd.nic.in/cmr1929.htm> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[14] Wcd.nic.in. 2022. [online] Available at: <http://wcd.nic.in/cma2006.pdf> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[15] Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (2006), Section 2(a) (India).
[16] Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (2006), Section 12 (India).
[17] Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (2006), Section 16(1) (India).
[18]Home.rajasthan.gov.in. 2022. [online] Available at: <https://home.rajasthan.gov.in/content/dam/homeportal/homedepartment/pdf/All%20Rules%20Acts/40%20Rajasthan%20Compulsory%20Registration%20of%20Marriages%20Act%202009.pdf> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[19] iPleaders. 2022. Registration of child marriages to be allowed in Rajasthan – iPleaders. [online] Available at: <https://blog.ipleaders.in/registration-child-marriages-allowed-rajasthan/> [Accessed 9 January 2022].
[20] ibid
[21] ibid
[22] ibid