Many were booked under stringent laws like POCSO, but several cases later weakened or collapsed in court due to poor investigation and lack of evidence.

Morigaon, Assam: “I saw this for the first time in my life…ghorot police aha ami ketiao kolpanao koribo nuari.” 

“Police came to our house, which we could never imagine,” Joshnara Begum (49) told 101Reporters, recalling the night in early 2023 when officers arrived at her doorstep in Moirabari, a minority-dominated town in Morigaon district, about 105 km from Assam’s capital, Guwahati.

A glimpse of Joshnara's residence (Photo - Sayantani Deb, 101Reporters)

“It was around 10 pm. I was returning from a wedding when I saw them knocking on our door,” she said. “I was scared to go near them. But I finally asked what had happened.”

The police told her a child marriage case had been filed against her son, Saddam Hussain. They were also looking for her husband, Gulzar.

Saddam was 22 at the time. He had married about five years earlier, when he was around 19. His wife was a minor when the marriage took place.

Joshnara’s family was among the thousands affected by Assam’s February 2023 crackdown on child marriage. More than 5,500 people were arrested across the state. These included grooms, parents and qazis.

Many of the cases were based on marriages that had taken place years earlier. In several instances, both the bride and groom had been minors at the time.

The state identified such cases through surveys. Health workers, including ASHA and ANM staff, collected information during routine visits. Police then registered FIRs against husbands, parents and facilitators. Some young brides were sent back to their parents’ homes or to shelter homes.

Joshnara said the police did not explain any of this that night.

“They asked a few questions and arrested both my son and husband,” she said. “We had no idea who had filed the case. The officers only said it was based on a survey.”

The next morning, the family went to the Moirabari police station. Gulzar was released after questioning. Saddam was sent to jail.

When the family finally found a lawyer through an acquaintance, they learned Saddam had been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, Indian Penal Code Section 376 (rape), and the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act – a combination that ensured his bail was rejected in the lower court.

Under the POCSO Act, offences are non-bailable and arrest is usually immediate. In contrast, offences under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act are less stringent. Police are expected to issue a notice before arrest in such cases.

After nearly 20 days in jail, Saddam secured bail from the Gauhati High Court. The family said they spent around Rs 50,000 on legal costs. Each court appearance cost them Rs 500 to Rs 700.

The case went to trial. He was later acquitted.

“Etiyao bhoe lage tetiar kotha bhabi…I still get scared remembering those days,” Joshnara said.

Stringent laws

Advocate Shafiqul Islam, who has handled several such cases at the Barpeta court, said the first wave of arrests often invoked both POCSO and the child marriage law.

“Later, police booked people only under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act,” he said.

He said the use of POCSO in such cases was questionable. “These are two different laws. They should not have been applied together,” he said.

POCSO carries a minimum sentence of 10 years, which can extend to life imprisonment. Under the child marriage law, the maximum sentence is two years.

In some cases, accused persons pleaded guilty. Courts then dropped POCSO charges and convicted them only under the child marriage law. This reduced the sentence.

According to Islam, no convictions under POCSO have been delivered in these cases so far.

He also pointed to gaps in the way cases were built. “In many cases, there were no witnesses,” he said. “Summons were not served on time. Charge sheets were often very thin.”

He said some cases dragged on for more than two years. Many ended in acquittal. Another concern was the process of arrest. “Cases were filed quietly. Arrests happened suddenly,” he said. “In child marriage cases, a notice should be issued before arrest. That was often not done.”

He said local actors such as village heads and health workers were involved in filing cases, often without fully understanding the legal implications.

Cases booked on older marriages

Local advocate Rezaul Ahmed said many arrests were linked to marriages that had taken place nearly a decade earlier.

“At the time of the crackdown, very few recent child marriages were being reported,” he said. “So cases were filed based on older instances.”

This meant that some couples had already been living together for years when arrests were made.

Nazirul Islam, president of the Village Defence Party in Hatimuria, said local monitoring has increased. “We are leaving no stone unturned and keeping strict vigil,” he said.

Village Defence Parties assist the police in rural areas. Nazirul said suspected cases are now reported quickly to the local station. Awareness camps are also being held more frequently.

“People understand it is against the law now,” he said. “They don’t encourage it openly.”

But the crackdown also created fear in many communities.

With husbands, parents or in-laws arrested, many young brides were left behind. Some returned to their parental homes. Others were unsure of their legal status or future.

ASHA worker Missira Begum said the fear was immediate and visible.

“Girls and young women stopped coming for regular check-ups,” she said. “They were afraid that any information shared with us would reach the police.”

She said this disrupted routine maternal care, especially for young brides who were already vulnerable.

At the same time, she said awareness has increased. “Now even qazis and maulanas ask for Aadhaar cards before conducting a marriage,” she said.

Missira said health workers had long warned families about early marriage. “A girl’s body is not ready. Pregnancies are high-risk. Babies are often underweight,” she said.

Child rights activist Rofiqul Islam said enforcement alone cannot solve the problem.

“Legal action has an impact,” he said. “But without education, access to schools and sustained support, the practice will continue in some form.”

Assam government’s campaign

The Assam government has said the crackdown was aimed at reducing teenage pregnancies and improving public health.

According to reports, the government’s move followed alarming numbers from National Family and Health Survey-5 (2019–20), released in 2022. Assam’s underage pregnancy rate stood at 11.7%, far above the national average of 6.8%. On the day of the drive, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said teenage pregnancies in the state accounted for 16.8%, calling child marriage the obvious cause.

“Our drive is for public health and public welfare,” he had said. “We will continue until we fulfil our objective.”

This story was produced for and originally published as part of the Crime and Punishment project in collaboration with Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. Cover Photo - Representative image/ AI-generated using Canva