GUWAHATI: Assam will arrest 2,000 to 3,000 men in the next 10 days in the second phase of the drive against child marriage, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced.
Speaking at the National Executive of BJP Mahila Morcha on Sunday, he expressed deep concern over the exploitation of girls.
“We got 5,000 people arrested in child marriage cases five months ago. In the next 10 days, another 2,000 to 3,000 men will be arrested. This (child marriage) has to be stopped,” Sarma said.
Stating that there is a law against child marriage in the state, he said if the menace continues, girls could never march forward and would continue to be exploited.
“Some people say I am anti-Muslim. However, I feel that Congress has not done the amount of work I have done to end child marriage and polygamy. You (Congress) made the Muslim society your vote banks. But we want women to get freedom from exploitation,” the Assam CM said.
He told the state Assembly on Monday that altogether 3,907 people (and not 5,000) were arrested in last five years in child marriage cases. He said 3,319 of them were arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and 62 were punished by the court following conviction.
A majority of those arrested were Muslims. Hindus and people from other communities were also arrested. Alongside the drive against child marriage, the state government is trying to end polygamy.
It has constituted a three-member committee with Advocate General, Legal Remembrancer and Director General of Police to draft the proposed anti-polygamy law. Sarma is hopeful that the law could be enacted by December this year.
Earlier, the government sought the views of the public. Altogether 149 individuals and organisations responded and 146 of them supported the proposed law while the remaining three opposed it.
