Pakistan Approves Hindu Marriage Bill After Decades of Inaction

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice passed the final draft of the Hindu Marriage Bill 2015.

A parliamentary panel has unanimously approved the Hindu Marriage Bill in Pakistan. (Photo: Reuters)

After decades of delay and inaction, the Hindu minority community in Pakistan will have a marriage law as a parliamentary panel has unanimously approved the Hindu Marriage Bill. The National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice, yesterday, passed the final draft of the Hindu Marriage Bill 2015, where five Hindu lawmakers were specially invited.

Though the delaying tactics continued till the end, the committee adopted the bill unanimously after making two amendments to fix the minimum age of the marriage – 18 for both male and female – and making the law applicable to the whole country, Dawn news reported.

The bill will now be tabled in the National Assembly wher​e it has a fair chance of being passed as the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party is supporting it. Committee Chairman, Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk expressed regret over the tactical delay in framing family law for the Hindu community.

It was unbecoming of us Muslims in general and the political leaders in particular. We were required to facilitate the legislation, not obstruct it. If 99 percent of the population are afraid of one percent, we need to look deep inside what we claim to be and what we are.

<b> Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk, Committee Chairman</b>

The bill will now be tabled in the National Assembly where it has a fair chance of being passed. (Photo: Reuters)

Virk and ruling PML-N lawmaker Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani had been pushing for approval but members of other parliamentary parties persisted in raising objections. Shagufta Jumani of the Pakistan People’s Party and Ali Mohammad Khan of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf raised many queries about the ​minimum age of a Hindu girl to be married, and the status of marriage if any of the partners converted to Islam.

Under the banner of Pakistan Hindu Council, I arrange mass marriage of around 100 girls every year and we clearly deny marriage of even an orphan who is under 18. People do not insist on marrying anyone below 18 years.

<b>Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani</b>

He wanted to drop a clause in the bill that said the marriage will be nullified if any of the partners converted to Islam. It was inserted by the Council of Islamic Ideology when the bill was sent for ‘Sharia vetting’ some six months ago.

Why can’t a Hindu, a Muslim or a Christian live together as a happily married couple? If Hindu boys and girls elsewhere can marry into other religions why can this not be a reality here?

<b>Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani</b>

His suggestion to drop the clause met stern resistance from Jumani and Khan.

After the 18th Amendment, issues relating to religious minorities and their family matters became provincial subjects. Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have passed the requisite resolutions, but the Sindh and Punjab assemblies have not yet done so.