The government was talking about the UCC and ban on polygamy in the state, but no such bill or ordinance has been introduced in the assembly so far for reasons best known to them, he said.
The Assam Cabinet’s decision to repeal the Assam Muslim Marriages and Divorces Registration Act, 1935 was welcomed by the ruling BJP, while opposition parties alleged that the move, which was ‘discriminatory against Muslims’, was done to polarizing election year.
The state cabinet on Friday evening approved the decision to repeal the law in a bid to end the social menace of child marriage as it contained provisions that allowed registration of marriages even if the bride and groom were of legal age respectively had not yet reached the age of 18 and 21. Prime Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said this.
AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal claimed that the repeal of the law was the first step to implement the Unified Civil Code (UCC) in Assam but it will sound the death knell for the BJP government in the state.
“They are trying to provoke the Muslims and polarize the voters in their favor,” Ajmal told reporters on the sidelines of a program here.
Congress MLA Abdul Rashid Mandal alleged that the decision is discriminatory against Muslims as it is the only mechanism for registration of marriages and divorces for Muslims and is valid under the Constitution.
The Goalpara (West) legislator also accused the BJP government of being ‘anti-Muslim’ and alleged that it is trying to show the Hindu people that the government is favoring them and robbing Muslims.
The government was talking about the UCC and ban on polygamy in the state, but no such bill or ordinance has been introduced in the assembly so far for reasons best known to them, he said.
Information and Public Relations Minister Pijush Hazarika, however, wondered how repealing an 89-year-old law that allows marriage between a little girl and an adult man becomes anti-Muslim.
Muslim leaders must act maturely and stand by the interests of our daughters, instead of standing up for abhorrent social evils,” Hazarika said in a post on X.
This will help ban child marriage, reduce child and maternal mortality and promote girls’ education, said Tourism Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah.
AIUDF MLA Rafikul Islam alleged that the cabinet decision was taken with the ‘intent of targeting Muslims in an election year’ as the government does not have the courage to engage the UCC.
Islam said efforts have been made to bring UCC into Assam but the saffron camp will not be able to do so because there are different castes and communities here “and they know it will not be legally sustainable.” The BJP talks a lot about polygamy and the practice is common among several communities who are followers of the BJP.
There are personal laws for the Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Jains, with the Constitution allowing different laws for marriages and divorces. Indian Constitution.
Assam United Opposition Forum General Secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi told PTI that the government should not take unilateral decisions on issues relating to social customs, religious beliefs and public sentiments.
‘In these matters, the opinions of the scholars of the communities involved had to be sought. Instead, the BJP government is creating a political issue to provoke a community by plaguing their sentiment, which is likely to lead to social unrest, the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) president said.
Eminent lawyer Aman Wadud told PTI that authorized registrars under the 1935 law will now not be able to register Muslim marriages, but this will now be done under the Special Marriage Act, which requires 30 days’ notice and a large number of documents.
“This centralized registration system, by abolishing a decentralized system, will reduce the registration of Muslim marriages. Contrary to government claims, this will increase the number of illegal Qazis and therefore the number of child marriages,” Wadud said.
Another prominent lawyer Bijon Mahajan told PTI that the cabinet decision to repeal the law is in keeping with the times and it also has a constitutional mandate.”
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
First print: February 24, 2024 | 11:59 PM IST