146 For, 3 Against: Decoding Assam govt’s move to ban polygamy

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has put out suggestions received by Assam government over proposed law to end polygamy in state. Assam government has earlier sought public opinion on matter. Assam government has received 149 suggestions on matter, among which 146 are in favour of ending polygamy while three institutions have registered ir objection, CM Sarma informed on microblogging site X (formerly Twitter). 

"We have received a total of 149 suggestions in response to our public notice. Out of se, 146 suggestions are in favour of bill, indicating strong public support. However, 3 organizations have expressed ir opposition to bill.  We will now proceed to next stage of process, which is to complete final drafting of bill in next 45 days,” he wrote. 

question is Can Assam Government bring in such a law? answer is Yes, as marriage falls under concurrent list, both center as well as state government can frame laws on it.

On May 12 this year, Assam government announced move to ban practice of polygamy in state through “legislative action”. An expert committee was also constituted to examine issue. expert committee has opined that state government is legislatively competent to frame laws to end practice of polygamy, however, it would need President’s assent.

What is Polygamy?

Polygamy consists of two words; poly (multiple) and gamos (marriage or union)’ referring to a practice of having more than one married spouse. When a woman has more than one husband, it is called Polyandry while if a man has more than one wife, it is referred to as Polygyny. Polygyny is a major practice around world including India. matter of polygamy is governed both by personal laws and Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Understanding laws surrounding Polygamy?

In India, as re is no Uniform Civil Code, personal affairs are governed by religious laws and different religious codes lay out different rules with respect to polygamy.

• For Hindus, polygamy is a criminal offence under Hindu Marriage Act, of 1955. Section 11 of act declares polygamous marriages void and mandates monogamous unions. If performed, Section 17 of same act along with Sections 494 and 495 of IPC elaborates on prospect of punishment. Under Hindu Marriage Act, bigamy (having two spouses) is also an offence in entire nation except Goa, as state follows its own personal laws.
• Since, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs also follow Hindu Marriage Act, same applies to all three religious denominations. 
• For ones following Islam religion, ‘Muslim Personal Law Application Act (Shariat) enacted in 1937 by All India Personal Law Board allows up to four marriages. 
• In Parsi religion, bigamy has been outlawed by Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, of 1936.
• Special Marriage Act (SMA), enacted in 1954 which was brought in to allow individuals belonging to different religions to marry, also forbids polygamy.

Prevalence of Polygamy in Assam, and India?

As per National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), in India, prevalence of polygamy is as follows- 2.1% among Christians, 1.9% among Muslims, 1.3% among Hindus and 1.6% among or religious groups in country. survey also suggests that polygamy is highly practiced in Norastern states among tribal population as compared to any or region, with Meghalaya topping list.

rate of polygamy was 2.4 among STs higher than national average of 1.4 %, and 1.5 among SCs, 1.3 among OBCs.

As per NFHS-5, in Assam, 2.4% of marriages are polygynous. While in Arunachal Presh it's 3.7%, 4.1% in Mizoram and 3.9% in Sikkim, according to analysed Indian Institute of Population Sciences.

Furr, Assam has widest gap between Hindu and Muslim women mitting to being in a (polygamous) polygynous relationship. rate of polygamy among Hindus in Assam was about 1.8 per cent as against 3.6 per cent among Muslims, according to NFHS-5.

Is it a move towards Uniform Civil Code (UCC)?

Before this, Assam Government h cracked down on child marriages in February this year pledging to end menace of child marriage in state by 2026. A total of 4235 cases were registered while over 3000 were arrested n.

step is being seen as a move towards UCC, however, state government vocates for same presenting it as a necessary social reform.