Girls but not Brides

Leading to a lifetime of disadvantage and deprivation, child marriage is at the root of many gender-related problems and is a clear violation of child rights. When this happens in poor, underprivileged families, the results are all the more distressing

A fter completing three months with PRADAN and my field engagements with the rural communities of Jaisinghnagar block, Shadol district, Madhya Pradesh (MP), last November, I came back to Kerala for my home visit. A news report about girl child marriages caught my attention. Almost all the TV news channels in Kerala reported the news that four girls from two districts of Kerala had got married in the last three months. The source of this news was an investigation report submitted by the local police to the Women’s Commission, Kerala.

I found the reaction extraordinary because in Jaisinghnagar, over the last few months, I had seen many rural families where the girls had got married at as young as 12 years. The marriages took place with the knowledge of village representatives, local leaders, government agencies, and the local and national NGOs working in the area. I wondered why the authorities in MP had not responded to the information whereas in Kerala there was a strong reaction. The law enforcement system and the constitutional rights are the same for everyone in this country. Why then are only some States alert to such transgressions?

Clearly, these problems are partially because of a weak law enforcement system or the lack of proper media attention and partially because of the social vulnerabilities of some groups of people. This remains a great challenge for professionals working in this area.

Child marriages are a clear violation of child rights. They impact the gender structure, engender inequalities and, in the long run, are the cause for most of the genderrelated problems that rural women face. One important fact is that these practices are happening mostly in poor and under-privileged families.