Assam: Fresh crackdown on child marriages, over 800 arrested since last night

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the number of arrests is likely to go up. The special operation began late last night

In a fresh crackdown against child marriages, over 800 accused have been arrested by Assam Police in a special operation which began in the early hours of dawn today, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said in a post on X.

“In a massive crackdown against child marriage , Assam Police has arrested over 800 accused persons in a special operation which began in the early hours of dawn.
The number of arrests is likely to rise,” CM Sarma’s post read.

In a massive crackdown against child marriage , Assam Police has arrested over 800 accused persons in a special operation which began in the early hours of dawn.

The number of arrests is likely to rise.

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) October 3, 2023

On September 11, during the Assam Assembly Session, Chief Minister Sarma had informed the House that a total of 3,907 people were arrested in cases related to child marriages in the last five years, of whom 3,319 are facing charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO).
Last month, police had detained 17 fake qazis (person who solemnises Muslim marriages) in different operations in Hailakandi district of Assam.

The crackdown on child marriages began in February this year.

On March, Chief Minister Sarma had informed that as decided by the cabinet, the state government has designated gaon panchayat secretaries as child marriage prohibition officers under the provisions of Section 16 of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

The Chief Minister further added that the state government in the state budget 2023-24 has allocated Rs 200 crore for it with a target of making Assam free of child marriage by the end of 2026 because the government want to see everybody convicted.

COMMENTS