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Brighty Ann Sarah
29 May 2025 |
On 27 May 2025, the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) declared the Islamabad Capital Territory Child Marriage Restraint Bill as "un-Islamic." The controversy was sparked by a speech by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman in the National Assembly, stating that the bill was against the norms of Sharia and contrary to Pakistan’s societal values and traditions. Earlier, on 19 May 2025, the Senate of Pakistan unanimously passed a landmark bill banning child marriage in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), setting the minimum age of marriage at 18 for both genders and introducing stringent penalties for violators. Introduced by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Sherry Rehman and previously passed by the National Assembly through Member of National Assembly (MNA) Sharmila Faruqui, this legislation replaces the outdated Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 in the ICT. The bill penalizes solemnization of any nikah (marriage) where either party is under 18 years of age.
What is the background to Child Marriage Bill?
It all started in the British India with the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929, also known as the Sarda Act, introduced by politician and activist Har Bilas Sarda and supported by Mohammad Ali Jinnah. Although the cornerstone of Pakistan’s child marriage legislations, the legislation was largely symbolic due to weak enforcement and societal resistance. However, in 1961 the Muslim Family Ordinance aimed at codifying Islamic family law marriage, divorce, maintenance, and inheritance among Muslim families raised the minimum age bar for marriage to 16 for girls and 18 for boys. The ordinance was enacted in all provinces.
What are the recent developments relating to child marriage in Pakistan?
The 18th Constitutional Amendment, passed in April 2010, significantly reshaped Pakistan’s legislative landscape by devolving authority over several subjects, including child rights and marriage laws, from the federal government to the provinces. The 18th Amendment was a response to the political upheaval following General Pervez Musharraf’s regime and the return to civilian rule in 2008 to prevent the concentration of power at the executive level. Signed into law by President Asif Ali Zardari, the amendment aimed to empower provinces by granting them legislative and administrative competence. This decentralization made child marriage a provincial subject, allowing regions to tailor laws to their socio-cultural contexts.
Who is opposing the legislation? Why?
There is opposition from religious groups and parties. They are against criminalizing child marriage in Pakistan. Arbitrary interpretations of Islamic law is often weaponised to justify early marriages, with groups like the Council of Islamic Ideology and religious political parties such as Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) and Jamaat-e-Islami arguing that setting the minimum marriage age at 18 contradicts Sharia law and that puberty is a permissible threshold for marriage.
Further, the significant influence maintained by these parties, particularly in conservative regions like Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan leads to political reluctance even among progressive lawmakers. The threat of distancing the conservative voter base and causing domestic instability often discouraged such legislations.
How did Sindh succeed in passing a legislation in 2013 on child marriage?
Sindh, in 2013, enacted the Sindh Child Marriage Restraint Act of 2014, which set the minimum marriage age for both genders at 18. The landmark bill was introduced by Pakistan People’s Party MPAs, Sharmila Faruqi and Rubina Saadat Qaimkhani, and was unanimously passed by the Sindh Assembly. The PPP’s progressive ideologies, shaped by leaders like Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari led to the unanimous support for the bill, making Sindh the first province to repeal the 1929 Act. The bill had faced severe religious and political resistance, particularly from the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) a constitutional body tasked with advising the government on Sharia laws. The CII labeled the bill “un-Islamic” and “blasphemous,” leading to the withdrawal of an amendment that called for harsher punishments for child marriage.
What are the social issues, exacerbating the child marriage crisis?
First, patriarchal norms and cultural beliefs play a critical role in perpetuating child marriages. Women are often viewed as ‘property’ that is meant to be given away, destined for their husband’s home. Several cultural practices like ‘watta satta’, or exchange marriages, and ‘swara’ or ‘vani’ a custom in tribal areas of Sindh and Balochistan, where young girls are married off to settle disputes or debts, perpetuate the cycle of female commodification.
Second, poverty and economic pressure further acts as primary causes of child marriage, particularly in rural areas. Families marry off daughters early to reduce financial burdens or secure dowries, viewing girls as economic liabilities. The early marriage of daughters is seen as a means to shift the responsibility to her husband’s family, alleviating pressure on the natal household. This is particularly true in large families with multiple children, where parents often struggle to afford the basic needs of the home. Additionally, marrying a daughter early is an effort to secure a dowry as a payment from the groom’s family, or young brides reduce dowry obligation for the bride’s family.
Third, the lack of education and awareness among underprivileged communities often keep young girls in the dark about their own rights, and undermine the efficiency in enforcing legislations in their favour. It also creates a resistance to advocacy and awareness initiatives. The unawareness about legislations and penalties also encourage early marriage, creating a disconnect between legislation and practice.
References:
“Senate approves bill outlawing underage marriage in ICT,” The News International, 19 May 2025
“Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 (Sarda Act) – History, Provisions & Impact,” Legal Heights, 5 March 2025
“Pakistan: Sindh Provincial Assembly Passes Child Marriage Restraint Bill | Library of Congress,” Library of Congress, 23 May 2014
“Pakistan bill aiming to ban child marriages shot down as 'anti-Islamic' and 'blasphemous,” The Independent, 16 January 2016
“The 18th Amendment: Historical Developments and Debates in Pakistan,” NUS Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), 4 September 2020
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