Raising the age of marriage for women
Since the government
has proposed the bill on raising the age of marriage for women in India there
has been a huge ruckus around this issue. Rather than understanding the depth
of this issue one should not argue in favor or against the topic. We need to
understand that everything that we see on social media is not always the truth
or to put it in a more precise form it is " One-sided truth ". Social
media algorithms show us only one side of the argument, which creates a mass
hysteria around a straightforward topic.
Arguments in Favor of raising the age of marriage:
1. The early age of marriage and consequent early
pregnancies have impacts on the nutritional levels of mothers and their
children, and their overall health and mental wellbeing.
2. The mother’s age at childbearing affects the
educational level, living conditions, health conditions, and decision-making
power of women. India is home to the largest number of underage marriages
in the world. The law will help to curb the menace of Child Marriage.
3. Late marriage will help in lowering MMR
(Maternal Mortality Rate).
4. Increase in educational and economic
opportunity for a girl child.
5. If girls can show they are financially
independent, parents will think twice before marrying them off early.
Arguments Against raising the age of marriage:
1. To think that raising the age of marriage will have beneficial
effects on women's status is often relying on statistics that seem to
support this view, however, this apparent association is a mirage.
2. The health indicators of poorer women do not change just because
they marry at a higher age. For example- Anaemia which is the highest
cause of maternal mortality in India shows no change even at age of
marriage up to 25 years.
3. Globally, the age of 18 is widely regarded as the age of adulthood.
It is also viewed as an upper limit in terms of the physical and
reproductive maturity of women, as well as the age of majority by child
rights conventions to which India is a signatory. Thus, the proposed move
will restrict the rights of already adult women.
4. More than half, 56 percent of women in the age group 20-24 years
married before the age of 21 years, and this too is an underestimate.
Should we not pause to think about what it means to criminalize the majority of
women in an entire generation since such trends will not change merely by
a change in the law?
My opinion:
The problem is that the real reasons that drive empowerment are not
being addressed, at least not adequately. We rank among the lowest nations in
the world when it comes to women’s empowerment. Educational attainments have
improved enormously in recent years but the shocking fact (evident in all major
data sets) is that decline in early marriages has been accompanied by a fall in
women’s employment rates. If we truly want to change this, we can do this
through affordable education, and meaningful and decent employment opportunities
through which women will be able to make better decisions about whether, when,
and whom to marry.
Addendum:
Prohibition of Child Marriage Act does not contain any provision
that explicitly says that the law would override any other Personal laws
that govern marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance, etc.
Is child marriage illegal? Child marriages are illegal
but not void. It is voidable if a minor party (girl/boy) petitions
the court. If a court finds a minor was coerced into marriage by parents
or guardians, the provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection
of Children) Act come into effect to keep the custody of the minor until
he or she attains a majority and can make a decision on the marriage.
