Panchayat member removed in Assam’s Dhubri for breach of child marriage law

The District Commissioner of Dhubri district has disqualified and removed an elected Anchalik Panchayat Member from office for violating provisions of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, following the conclusion of an official inquiry.

According to an order issued by the Office of the District Commissioner, Amir Ali, elected as Anchalik Panchayat Member (APM) from 74-Patamari Gaon Panchayat, has been removed from his post with immediate effect. The action followed a complaint filed by Renuka Khatun, who alleged that Amir Ali or his spouse had been involved in a child marriage and that false information was furnished in the affidavit submitted along with the nomination papers for the Panchayat Election, 2025.

The complaint was examined through a formal inquiry conducted by Sugata Siddhartha Goswami, ACS, Election Officer, Dhubri. The inquiry report established that Elifa Khatun, wife of Amir Ali, was born on August 20, 1997, and that their son Imran Khan was born on February 23, 2013. At the time of the birth of her first child, Elifa Khatun was 15 years, six months, and three days old, indicating that the marriage was solemnised when she was a minor.

The order stated that the act amounted to a violation of the legal age of marriage under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006. It further cited Section 111(2) of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994, which bars any person from being elected or continuing as a member of a Zilla Parishad, Anchalik Panchayat, or Gaon Panchayat if the person or his or her spouse has violated the prescribed legal age of marriage.

Invoking the relevant provisions of the Assam Panchayat Act, 1994, along with the Assam Panchayat (Constitution) Rules, 1995, the District Commissioner ordered the disqualification and removal of Amir Ali from Anchalik Panchayat membership. The seat has been declared vacant with immediate effect.

Copies of the order have been forwarded to the Panchayat and Rural Development Department, the Assam State Election Commission, the Dhubri Zilla Parishad, and the Dharamsala Anchalik Panchayat for information and necessary action.

The order underlines the administration’s firm stance on enforcing child marriage laws and upholding the integrity of elected local self-government institutions.