Child Marriage Deprives Children Of Agency, Autonomy & Right To Enjoy Childhood; Affects Both Boys & Girls : Supreme Court

While issuing several guidelines to prevent child marriages, the Supreme Court has elaborately discussed how child marriages violate Constitutional rights.

The judgment, delivered in a petition filed by the NGO Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action, stated that child marriages violate the rights to self-determination, choice, autonomy, sexuality, health and education of children, resulting in the infraction of the rights under Article 21 of the Constitution.

"Child marriage deprives children of their agency, autonomy and right to fully develop and enjoy their childhood," wrote Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud in the judgment.

"Girls who are married off early are not only denied their childhood but are also forced into social isolation on account of being cut off from their natal family, friends and other support systems. They are left to the mercies of their marital home and in-laws and denied their innocence which is native to a meaningful childhood experience. Boys who are married early are forced to take up more responsibilities and are pressured to play the role of a provider to the family, earlier in life. Patriarchy requires members of a marital union to play specific roles. It forces men to play the public role in a marriage and fend for the family by being responsible for its economic and occupational development. Both sexes are adversely affected by forced and early marriage," the Court stated.

The Court noted that the 2019-2021 National Family Health Survey-510 pits child marriage at 23.3% of girls under the age of eighteen and 17.7% of boys12 under the age of twenty-one. The prevalence of child marriages in India has halved since the enactment of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act in 2006 from 47% to 27% in 2015-16 and 23.3% in 2019-2021.

Marrying in childhood has the effect of objectifying the child

The Court observed that marrying in childhood has the effect of objectifying the child. 

The practice of child marriage imposes mature burdens on children who are not physically or mentally prepared to comprehend the significance of marriage.

When women are forced into marriages to protect their 'chastity' and 'virginity' she is denied her right to sexuality, bodily autonomy and the freedom to make choices for herself as she sees fit.

The minor is then boxed with the expectation of compulsory heterosexuality. The ability of a person to experience sexual desire organically and to navigate their choice in intimacy is effaced at the altar of tradition and social norm. At an age which must be instructed by the ability to make mistakes and learn from life experiences, children are stunted and forcibly fit into boxes. The multi- dimensional assault of child marriage is therefore not only oppressive to heterosexual girls and boys but also to all gender and sexual minorities.

Right to reproductive choice affected

 Upon marriage, a girl is expected to bear children and prove her fertility. Decisions of reproduction are withdrawn from the girl and placed in the hands of the family. The right to choice and autonomy of a woman who is married as a child is violated by the system of child marriage. When minor girls are forced to make conjugal relations, they experience post-traumatic stress and depression emanating from sexual abuse by an elder partner leads to irreversible physical and psychological damage in girls. Her choice is eviscerated in matters of selection of partner, time of marriage, reproductive freedom and sexuality. Article 21 protects these rights

Child marriage inflicts tangible and lifelong physical and mental injuries to its members. The right to health is made illusory by all accounts within such an institution. The effect of child marriage denies women their health which is vital to lead a dignified life.

Right to education affected

Marriage for most women in patriarchal societies is an announcement of educational conclusion, the judgment noted.

It is uncommon for women to continue education after marriage without the express approval and wish of the in-laws and husband. The imposition of a marital family on the education of women may be an experience common to all women. But when the woman is married as a child, her education is arrested in place during a pivotal period of brain development. The minority of a woman's age at the time of her marriage has a heightened impact on her education. The right to primary education is a fundamental right expressly enshrined under Article 21-A.

The right to childhood belongs to all sexes. Education- primary, sexual and life-enhancing – is integral to the right to childhood. Realisation of this right is crucial in dealing with the evils of child marriage, the Court stated.

 Advocate Mugdha appeared on behalf and ASG Aishwarya Bhati appeared for the Union.