A month ago, in Rajasthan's Ajmer, 12-year-old Seema, excited and exhausted after an 11-day residential football camp, said with calm confidence: "I play centre-forward. At first, it was difficult – I was chided for wearing my sports uniform. But we girls had meetings and taught ourselves how to present our arguments before the adults in our homes."
"I convinced my grandmother that nothing would happen to me, and she gradually agreed to let me join practices. Now, they don't stop me, I can go anywhere. I've just returned from Chennai."Seema
Seema is one of the many girls being supported by Rajasthan-based NGO Mahila Jan Adhikar Samiti (MJAS) to fight child marriage – their own and that of others.
It began as a small initiative by HAQ: Centre for Child Rights and MJAS in 2012. But today, there are over 200 girls across the district who play football, continue their education, and negotiate with their families to delay their marriages.
There are similar stories in Jharkhand and West Bengal.
In Bihar's Madhubani, in a field action project facilitated by Leher, a child rights organisation, and NGO Sarvo Prayas Sansthan, activists work with child protection committees and children's groups constituted under Mission Vatsalya, a Centrally-sponsored scheme under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
This has led to zero child marriage being reported in the last seven years among the children's groups.
Out of 567 girls in the groups in 2021, 91 percent are pursuing high school, 9 percent are in college, and 5 percent are pursuing vocational courses alongside their education.
We share these examples because they show that when girls are empowered by their families, communities, and the government, child marriage can be addressed.
When the ecosystem supports girls to feel safe, to continue their education, to work, have a voice and fulfil aspirations, the age of marriage pushes back, and a whole generation moves forward.
And yet, this is not the path Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has chosen to address the issue in his state. Under his orders, there are mass arrests taking place in Assam.
According to him, this action is necessary – "In order to save lakhs of girls from this situation in the future... one generation will have to suffer."
Where Does Data Show Us?
As per NFHS- data, although Assam is certainly a high-prevalence state when it comes to underage marriage, however, it contributes barely 3 per cent to the national total of marriages before the age of 18. Indeed, child marriage must be addressed, but is criminal action of this magnitude the answer?
Child marriage is a complex social problem.
It remains a concern, but it's no longer what it was two decades ago when almost half of India's girls had child marriages. Today, it is less than a quarter.
Across India, including Assam, we are seeing an increase in the age of child, with most marriages being of girls in the 15 to 17 age group. Unfortunately, everywhere, the other indicators have not kept up – retention in higher education, a safe and violence-free environment, and health services.
Women's economic participation, too, has recently declined, even where there is opportunity.
Marriage, therefore, still remains central to secure a woman's social and economic status, putting pressure on families to marry their girls, who, in turn, also feel the need to marry.
Little Reaction From More Privileged Groups
Underage marriages are not prevalent in the upper socio-economic groups. It is very much a phenomenon of the resource-poor and vulnerable sections. The economic stress of dowry and the 'dishonour' that may befall the family and community if a girl gets into a relationship favour her early marriage.
Parents believe it is in everybody's interest to stop her higher education, not let her work, and advance her marriage to 'protect' her.
We have seen very little reaction from the middle classes or from political parties on this crackdown. No one wants to be seen as 'supporting child marriage' and care little for an issue that does not affect them.
Hence, a familiar vein of argument is made by supporters and bystanders – "tough action, strong measures, clear message." This is often heard every time a chronic problem of our deeply patriarchal social norms confront us as a society – be it rape, child sexual abuse, or the knee-jerk responses to them by society and the government.
Reports now indicate the consensual nature of underage marriages, where girls and boys either elope, force their parents to allow them to marry, or do not object to the underage marriage arranged by their parents.
Is It Just a Social Reform Issue?
So, while forced marriages definitely need to be 'cracked down' upon, how should we deal with adolescents who marry young?
Experiences of working on the issues of child marriage have shown that it is clearly not enough to address this simply as a social reform issue – there is also a need to address it within the context of adolescent sexual behaviour where girls and boys see marriage as the only means to express their sexuality and their desire to be in a relationship.
Child marriage requires a nuanced approach. It is one of those issues that exposes fault lines where social law can become instruments that inflict violence.
While the marriage of very young children is very clearly violence, as children enter older adolescence, it becomes complicated, requiring the system to develop the capacity to discern between a forced marriage where a child is asking for help, from a consensual one, or ones where the lines between consent, exploitation, and manipulation blur.
Where Do Solutions Lie?
What is needed is an effective system in place with resources (funds) and capacitated functionaries who can act effectively and sensitively.
Bolstered by the government strides in making higher education more accessible, resulting in more girls continuing school beyond the elementary years, and large-scale awareness campaigns on child marriage, the examples from Ajmer and Madhubani are among many others across the country that have been disruptive in their ability to break intergenerational child marriage in a single generation.
These must be scaled up, and must be combined with schemes like Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana and Rural Self Employment Training Institutes, which enable youth both girls and boys to develop skills and earn livelihood.
There must be a realisation that solutions lie in a differentiated and nuanced approach. Law is necessary. But for it to be helpful to the communities concerned, it must be used for enabling, rather than for just punitive action.
In any case, the law cannot be the primary means to addressing underage marriages. We need to have 360-degree approach focused on creating an enabling environment – which is also safe and empowering.
We need to recognise and decriminalise non-coercive consensual adolescent sexuality between peers and focus on engaging with them on responsible sexual behaviour.
The focus needs to shift to empowering girls from disadvantaged rural contexts through adequate resourcing and opportunities. They need to be assured quality education, employment, safety, mobility, and the freedom to choose if, when, and who to marry.
(Enakshi Ganguly is a Human Rights Activist, Co-founder of HAQ: Centre for Child Rights, and Honorary Professor at National Law University, Odisha. Nicole Rangel Menezes is a child rights social worker, and co-founder of Leher. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed are the authors' own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)
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