MSHRC takes note of child marriages in Marathwada, seeks responses from govt

Mumbai: Taking serious cognizance of a news report which highlighted instances of child marriages happening in Beed district of Marathwada region, the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) has directed the chief secretary of the state to list the steps being taken to address the issue of forced marriage of young girls.

The MSHRC bench of chairperson justice KK Tated and member Bhagwant More took cognizance of a report in a Hindi magazine which highlighted instances of minor girls and boys being married off forcefully by their parents.

The report had cited the instance of a Class 8 girl who was married to a Class 7 boy who had dropped out from school to work in a sugarcane field. The commission noted that by the age of 20, the duo had three children and the man subsequently became an alcohol addict, thus compounding the problems faced by the wife who was not keeping well due to poverty and scarcity of resources.

“The issue raised and the data given in the news report is alarming and involves human rights relating to life, liberty, dignity and equality of the poor people, especially the women in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra,” said the bench in its order dated December 21.

“The provisions for punishment (for flouting Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006) with rigorous imprisonment which may extend to 2 years and fine which may extend up to Rs. 1 lakh have also been made but still child marriages take place in many parts of the country,” it added.

The commission noted that government agencies had to be more vigilant and take effective steps to fight this social evil. The bench also observed the plight of the young girls / women who were falling prey to lack of infrastructure and apathy of the government agencies was a matter of concern for the Commission.

In this backdrop, the Commission issued notices to the chief secretary and the collectors of Jalna, Aurangabad, Parbhani, Hingoli, Nanded, Latur, Osmanabad and Beed districts and called for a detailed report from them, including the steps taken / proposed to be taken to address the issue and also directed them to file their responses in six weeks.

The bench also appointed a special rapporteur to visit the area mentioned in the report and “collect data and make an in-depth study and suggest measures for policy formulation on socio-economic issues with a view for better implementation of the law.” The bench has asked for the report within 3 months.