‘Child marriage cases rise six-fold in 2023, nearly 17,000 girls kidnapped’

New Delhi: Newly released data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) shows a steep rise in cases under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act in 2023. The report records 6,038 cases nationwide, up from 1,002 in 2022. Assam accounted for 5,267 cases, nearly 90 percent of the national total.

Officials noted that other states also registered incidents, though at far lower numbers. Tamil Nadu recorded 174 cases, Karnataka 145, and West Bengal 118. In contrast, states and Union Territories including Chhattisgarh, Nagaland, Ladakh, and Lakshadweep did not report a single case under the Act.

The NCRB data also revealed abductions linked to forced marriages. “In 2023, 16,737 girls and 129 boys were kidnapped or abducted ‘for marriage’,” the bureau said.

The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, enacted in 2006, sets the minimum legal age for marriage at 18 for women and 21 for men. It makes punishable not only those entering such marriages but also those who arrange or conduct them.

A senior official remarked, “The numbers highlight the need for stronger interventions to prevent child marriages and safeguard minors.”