Child marriage in Assam: only 494 convicted out of 8,773 charge-sheeted
Guwahati, Mar 13: A mere 494 persons out of 8,773 people who were charge-sheeted for child marriage and POCSO cases in Assam have been convicted since 2017, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday.
Replying to a query by Congress MLA Abdur Rashid Mandal in Assam Assembly, Sarma said a total of 8,773 people have been chargesheeted under Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 (PCMA) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO) between 2017 and February 2023.
"A total of 494 persons were convicted and a total of 6,174 persons released on bail," he added. This represents a a conviction rate of just 5.63 per cent.
Sarma informed the House that 4,049 persons were arrested under the PCMA and 8,908 people have been nabbed under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) across Assam from 2017 to February this year.
During the period, 134 boys under the age of 21 years, and 2,975 girls below 18-years of age married (the permissible age of marriage for males and females respectively), he added.
Reacting to the data and on the recent crackdown against child marriage accused, Mandal alleged that the Assam government is "terrorising" people using the two acts.
On this, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika said: "How is it terrorising people. You (Congress government) did not frame the rule. Because of vote bank politics, you did not take any initiative."
This led to a noisy scene in the House with both treasury and opposition benches trading charges.
In a separate query by Independent MLA Akhil Gogoi, the Chief Minister stated that 4,111 incidents of child marriage took place in the state from April 2021 to February 2023.
"A total of 4,670 cases have been registered naming 7,142 accused. Already 3,483 persons have been arrested, of which 1,182 are in jail, 2,253 have got bail and notices have been issued to 48 others," he added.
Sarma also informed the legislators that the government has not taken any step to take responsibility for the children born out of child marriages, but said steps will be initiated if any child requires care and security.
During the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the Governor's address, Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia said slapping of POCSO and rape cases on child marriage accused have created disturbances in the society with many old people getting arrested.
AIUDF's Aminul Islam climed the government hatched a conspiracy and accordingly slapped POCSO and rape charges on the people, who had married 7-8 years.
Congress MLA Bharat Chandra Narah refuted the government claim on Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) and said child marriage is one of the reasons for high MMR in Assam, but not the only cause.
CPI(M)'s Manoranjan Talukdar said: "The government said the PCMA was not implemented. If so, who is responsible for that? The BJP was in power in Assam for over six years now."
He also said that no awareness against child marriage has been created in the state and Assam should follow Kerala model as there is hardly any case of child marriage in the Southern state.
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Allahabad HC orders probe into 'reinstatement' of teacher in UP's Barabanki
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered a probe by the special task force (STF) into alleged irregularities in the rejoining of a teacher at City Intermediate College in Barabanki, observing that the reinstatement appeared to be prima facie illegal.
The court also directed the recovery of the salary paid to the teacher during the disputed period.
A bench of Justice Rajeev Singh passed the order on a petition filed by the college management committee. The court expressed doubts over the roles of the District Inspector of Schools (DIOS), Barabanki, the college principal and the teacher concerned and hence, directed a detailed inquiry into the matter.
Taking note of alleged manipulation of records and misleading submissions, the court ordered the immediate transfer of the Barabanki DIOS to ensure a fair probe. It also directed the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the then joint director of education of the Ayodhya division.
In its order, the court found that the teacher, Abhay Kumar, was initially appointed as an assistant teacher in 2018 but joined an Eklavya Model Residential School in Chhattisgarh as a lecturer in June 2024 without obtaining permission from the management. His subsequent request to retain the lien was rejected.
Despite this, he was allowed to rejoin the Barabanki College in September 2025 on the directions of the joint director of education and the DIOS, and was even paid the salary for October 2025. The court termed the rejoining "wholly illegal" and lacking any legal basis.
The bench also expressed concern over lapses in communication within the education department and directed the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary to ensure that official orders are communicated through email and WhatsApp as well, to prevent disputes.
The matter is next listed for hearing on May 28 when a compliance report is sought.
