A total of 71 complaints of child marriages have been reported in Kurukshetra since 2021-22, according to data procured from the authorities.
Of these, 27 marriages were prevented through counselling, while three were stopped through injunction orders issued by courts. In 18 cases, the marriages had already been solemnised and the matters were referred to the police. In the remaining 23 cases, the boy and the girl were found to be adults.
However, officials said there are still instances of child marriages that go unreported.
Recently, a case came to light when a married girl was brought to the Lok Nayak Jai Parkash Civil Hospital to deliver her child and it was found that she was a minor. According to information available, the girl was 16 years old and had married a 17-year-old boy last year.
The girl reportedly said that her mother had died six years ago, while her father worked as a labourer. She said that since there was no one to take care of her, she was married off. A case was registered against the girl’s father under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act at Jhansa police station.
Bhanu Gaur, Protection-cum-Prohibition Officer, Kurukshetra, said, “Child marriage is illegal under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act. People think that due to poverty, families get involved and get their minor daughters married off, but the ground reality is different. In most of the cases, it was observed that the families don’t want their daughters to elope with some boy and bring bad name to family. Just to ensure that the girl is married off according to the family’s wishes, they arrange the marriage without even waiting them to turn major.”
“There can be some other reasons but financial issues are not a major cause of marrying off the minor girls. There are government schemes, and several charitable and religious organisations are coming forward to help poor families in meeting their wedding expenses,” she said.
The Protection Officer said the issue is not restricted to any particular community, caste or rural area. However, in several cases, it was found that families involved in child marriages were migrants.
“Constant efforts are made to prevent child marriages but we still get complaints. We have been asking people to report child marriages so that appropriate action can be taken. Child marriage eliminates opportunities for children’s education and also leads to an increase in maternal mortality rates. While the staff keep obtaining information throughout the year, a close watch is kept on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya,” she added.
The Protection-cum-Prohibition Officer said, “Such marriages take place at unregistered places. Meetings are held with the service providers, managers and priests of shrines and marriage palaces. They are urged to take the age proof of the boy and the girl to ensure that they are not underage. Any individual who solemnises a child marriage, promotes it or assists in its execution in any manner will face action.”