Lowering legal age of marriage

A new draft law proposed by the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs recommends that while the minimum age for marriage should remain 18 for girls, parents can get them married off at 16 if there is "any logical reason" behind their decision.

A draft proposing that the minimum age of consent and marriage be lowered to 16 had already been shelved by the government last year. However, citing reasons such as pregnancy in minor girls, the ministry now says that this proposed amendment to the law should be considered.

Such a proposal is contradictory as, on the one hand, the government claims that any girl below the age of 18 is still a child while also arguing that parents have the right to get their daughter married off if the girl is 16 years or above.

If parents are given the choice to marry their daughters off at 16, we are surely to see a further drop in college and university enrolments of girls from the existing 47 percent and 33 percent respectively.

Insecurity and poverty are two major reasons for early marriage. Instead of further lowering the age of marriage, the government should ensure the security of girls in their homes and in society at large. There is also a need to educate people about the ills of early marriage. Reducing the legal marriageable age by two years would be an ill-advised move.