Jharkhand minister said – instead of increasing, age should be reduced, UP’s SP MP said – girls will roam
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a bill to make the minimum age of marriage for boys and girls the same, i.e. 21 years. If this law is made, then the minimum age of marriage for girls in all religions and classes will change. Most people have supported this decision, but a minister from Jharkhand and Samajwadi Party MP from Uttar Pradesh is against the decision of the central government.
Jharkhand’s Minority Welfare Minister Hafizul Hasan says that the government should lower the marriage age for girls instead of increasing the age. Considering the growth of girls nowadays, it should be reduced to 16 years, if not then let it remain 18 years only. BJP has opposed this statement of the minister.
At the same time, SP’s Sambhal MP Dr. Shafiqur Rahman Burke has said that if the age of marriage of the girls is increased, then they will be a vagabond. Dr. Burke said that early marriage saves girls from all kinds of bad situations. He will strongly oppose the bill to increase the minimum age of girls in Parliament. Dr. Burke is often in the headlines due to his controversial statements. Read the MP’s statement here…
BJP said- statement objectionable
BJP has opposed the minister’s statement. Party’s chief whip in the assembly and Bokaro MLA Viranchi Narayan said that a minister should not make such a statement. He is also a senior leader of the party.
23.3% of girls married below 18 years of age
23.3% of girls in the country are married below the age of 18 years. In rural areas this percentage is 27%. That is, one out of every 4 girls is married below the age of 18 years. The results of the recently released National Family Welfare Survey (NHFS)-5 show that 36.1% of girls in Jharkhand are married below the age of 18 years.
Situation worse in Bihar-Bengal
In this respect, Jharkhand is better than its neighbors Bihar and Bengal. If we look at the NFHS-5 data, 48.1% in West Bengal, 43.4 in Bihar and 36.1% in Jharkhand are getting married before the age of 18 years. In many states, the percentage of girls getting married at an early age in rural areas is higher than the national average.
What is the proposal to raise the marriage age of girls to 21 years?
This was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech from Red Fort on 15 August 2020. Explaining the reason behind this, the PM said that the government has always been concerned about the health of daughters and sisters. To save daughters from malnutrition, it is necessary that they get married at the right age. At present, the minimum age of marriage for girls in the country is 18 and that of boys is 21.
