Indian parents race to marry off daughters as officials mull raising marriage age

Nation sees increase in rushed nuptials as parliament committee debates the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021

Critics say gender equality and reduction in number of child marriages would be better served by improved education, not ‘coercive law’

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Hindu brides gather as they wait to participate in a mass marriage ceremony in India’s Gujarat state in December. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:18pm, 11 Jan 2022Updated: 12:45am, 20 May 2023

India is witnessing a sharp surge in ‘panic’ or ‘distress’ weddings following the government’s proposal to raise the legal age women can wed from 18 to 21, the same as men.

Girls in their late teens are being rushed into marriages by parents worried that the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021 will become law and they will have to either wait for their daughters to get hitched or face the wrath of the justice system.

They are willing to pay triple fees or are desperately searching for potential suitors, amid reports of priests being rushed off their feet and some ceremonies taking place in homes as marriage venues are jammed.

A couple pose during a pre-wedding photo shoot near India’s Presidential Palace, shrouded in smog, in New Delhi, India in November. Photo: Reuters

The bill, rushed through parliament last month with little debate aiming to increase gender equality and eradicate child marriages, is being scrutinised by a parliamentary committee.

Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, who introduced the bill, said the move to raise the legal age was a “decisive step” in India’s history. The country is still a conservative society where women marrying at a young age is not out of the ordinary and underage marriages are common, especially in rural areas.