Yesterday, On 22nd August, The Assam government introduced a Bill to repeal the Muslim marriage and divorce law in the state. The Bill argues that the existing law is susceptible to misuse, allowing for underage or forced marriages without the full consent of those involved.
Assam: The BJP-led government in Assam, On Thursday, introduced a new Bill in the State Assembly aiming to repeal the current law regulating Muslim marriages and divorces in the state.
The proposed Bill seeks to abolish the Assam Moslem Marriages and Divorces Registration Act of 1935, primarily citing its role in facilitating child marriages.
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The Bill provides additional justifications for repealing the Act. The statement of objects and reasons highlights that the 1935 Act, a pre-independence law, originally enacted for the former Province of Assam to address specific Muslim religious and social practices.
It further notes that the Act does not mandate the registration of marriages and divorces, and the informal registration process it allows may lead to non-compliance with current legal standards.
The statement further notes,
“There remains a scope of registering marriages of individuals below 21 years (in the case of males) and 18 years (in the case of females), with little to no monitoring for the implementation of this Act across the state, which results in significant litigation in criminal and civil courts.”
It also highlights that the current Act is susceptible to misuse by both authorized registrars and citizens, enabling underage or forced marriages without the consent of the parties involved.
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The government argues that this outdated law has become a source of extensive litigation in both criminal and civil courts, as it is prone to misuse by registrars and citizens alike. The existing law’s vulnerabilities have allegedly enabled instances of underage and forced marriages, often without the necessary consent of the parties involved, highlighting the need for its repeal.
This new Bill represents the government’s efforts to align marriage and divorce laws with contemporary legal frameworks and ensure the protection of individual rights, particularly in preventing child and forced marriages.
[Read Bill]