Private bill in Sindh Assembly proposes Rs500 fine for parents if children are not married on reaching 18 years of age

Karachi: A private bill has been submitted in the Sindh Assembly to make it binding upon parents in the province to marry off their children when they reach 18 years of age.

If the parents fail to state the reason for not doing this, they will have to pay Rs500 as penalty.

The private bill entitled “Sindh Compulsory Marriage Act - 2021” has been submitted by Syed Abdul Rasheed, a legislator belonging to Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, the alliance of main Islamist political parties in the country.

The bill carries the provision that the marriages should become compulsory for a person on attaining 18 years of age.

The bill further states that parents of a child who could not be married at 18 years, will need to submit an undertaking with the deputy commissioner of their district stating reasons to justify this.

Parents who fail to submit the undertaking under the above provision of the bill will be liable to pay Rs 500 as penalty for each of their children.

The penalty will be submitted in the District Account of the Deputy Commissioner through recognised banks. The bill proposes that the new law should come into force at once in the province.

In his video message after submitting the bill, MPA Syed Abdul Rasheed said that the proposed law was in accordance with Islamic teachings that stood for marriage after attaining adulthood. He said the government should pass legislation to ban dowry and also propose a standard procedure to adopt austerity in marriage ceremonies. He said the government should propose methods to make marriage a simplified and easy affair.