Assam: 2,170 arrested so far in child marriage cases in state, say Police

A total of 2170 have been arrested so far in connection to cases of child marriage in the state, said Assam Police spokesperson Prasanta Kumar Bhuyan.

''The figures of the arrest in Child Marriage cases have risen. Till this morning, the police have apprehended 2,170 persons across the state and it will increase further,'' Bhuyan informed reporters.

On February 4, Assam Director General of Police (DGP) GP Singh had informed that as many as 4,074 cases were registered at different police stations across the state.

With regard to these cases, a total of 2,044 arrests have been made, the Assam DGP informed.

“The chief minister had received information about child marriage being rampant in several parts of the state, after which he ordered an inquiry. As per the directive, data of three years pertaining to child marriage cases were accessed,” Singh added.

"Following this, all the district SPs were told to get in touch with respective village defence parties, Gaon Buras, chiefs of various communities, and prominent people of various communities, and on the basis of that we have observed that there are instances of child marriage in various parts of the state," he further informed.

As per Singh, the highest arrests were made in Biswanath, Dhubri, Barpeta, Kokrajhar and Hojai.  

Earlier, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said that individuals who married girls below 14 years of age would be booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and cases under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 will be registered against those who have married girls in the 14-18 age group.

“Arrests will go on as long as the menace that this child marriage continues to persist in Assam. Anyone indulging in child marriage will be straightaway jailed,” the Chief Minister added.

“We will work towards ridding Assam of child marriages by 2026. In the last nine days, over five thousand cases of child marriages have come to the fore,” he said.

Also read: 2,044 arrested in child marriage cases so far in Assam, informs DGP