The Supreme Court of India is all set to hear a petition filed by the National Commission for Women (NCW), which has asked the government to raise the legal age of marriage for Muslim girls to the same number as all other religions.
According to the petition filed by the NCW, the commission has requested the apex court to make the minimum age of marriage for Muslim girls the same as that of persons belonging to other religions, and a bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha has urged Centre to issue a response.
The law in India states that the legal age of marriage for women is 18 and for men, it’s 21. However, the same does not apply to the Muslim community as they have separate marital laws from the Hindus. The legal age for marriage has not been specified by Muslim law.
The laws specified for Muslim marriages in India states that a girl can get married after she hits puberty, which is assumed to be at the age of 15 for most girls. This means that as per Muslim law, minor girls can get married to adult men.
The NCW said that allowing Muslims to marry at the age of puberty (around 15) is arbitrary, irrational, discriminatory and violative of penal laws. The plea said even the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) does not provide for those under 18 to consent to sex.
Thus, the NCW is urging the Supreme Court to raise the marital age of women to 18 for the Muslim community, as is for the rest of the country. Taking note of this issue, CJI DY Chandrachud has issued a notice to the Centre, seeking their response.
Earlier, the apex court agreed to examine the plea of the National Commission For Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) against an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which said a Muslim girl of 15-years-old is competent to enter into a contract of marriage with a person of her choice under the Muslim Personal Law.
(With ANI inputs)
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