In a horrific incident, a 32-year-old man allegedly beheaded a minor girl in Kodagu, Karnataka after their wedding was called off as local authorities became aware of it. The wedding had reportedly been arranged as the couple was “in love”, but both families agreed to postpone the marriage till the girl turned 18 in two years.
This angered the groom, who is alleged to have beheaded the girl and made off with the severed head. The incident shines a light on the social acceptance of child marriage and the entitlement bred into some Indian men, which can have fatal consequences for women and girls. It also illuminates the treacherous path trod by social workers in convincing families not to marry off a child while also ensuring the child’s safety.
A great deal of awareness has been raised against child marriage in India, and there has been progress. A study of the latest National Family Health Survey shows that the prevalence of child marriage has halved since 1993, when 49.4 percent of the respondents reported they had been married before the age of 18. However, the progress has not been uniform. At present, five states alone—West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh—account for over half the child marriages in the country.
It is clear that economic stress has a clear role to play in exacerbating the crisis. Migration, poverty and even social concerns about children exploring relationships intersect with patriarchal norms to make underage marriage appear to be the best way of ensuring a girl child’s safety.
However, child marriage is fraught with risk for the girl—it takes a toll on her health and that of her children, as well as on her own education and economic wellbeing. New research suggests that by intensifying poverty and other oppressive conditions, climate-related stressors such as heat waves can also push parents to marry off their daughters young.
A holistic approach is essential, one that targets the economic concerns of parents by incentivising them to keep their girls in school, as has been attempted in a few states. It also needs to address structural issues such as the perilous lack of girls’ and women’s safety, bonded labour and forced migration, which might force the parents towards an unfortunate choice.