Child Marriage Prosecutions in India - Case Law Analysis of Actors, Motives and Outcomes 2008-2017

Objectives

The study aimed to examine how India’s child marriage-related laws are actually used in practice by analysing 83 High Court and District Court decisions from 2008–2017. It sought to identify who brings cases to court, what remedies they seek, how judges reason and decide, and whether the law advances or undermines the rights and welfare of girls in contexts of underage marriage.

Findings

The analysis shows that prosecutions and petitions around child marriage are driven less by protection of girls and more by parental control, family conflicts and husbands defending themselves against criminal liability. Very few cases are initiated by girls, and almost none to prevent a forced marriage; most girl-initiated actions relate to elopements or to ending marriages that have already broken down, usually with support from a husband or relative rather than state actors such as child marriage prohibition officers.

Courts rarely apply the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act consistently, often prioritize questions of marital validity and parental authority, and use age in rigid ways that can ignore adolescents’ evolving capacities and wishes. Criminal and personal laws intended to protect minors are frequently mobilised to punish young couples and restore parental control, while structural drivers of early marriage, forced marriage and lack of services remain unaddressed.

Recommendations

The authors recommend shifting away from a singular focus on stricter, more punitive laws towards legal frameworks that differentiate between forced and self-arranged unions and centre the welfare and agency of adolescent girls. Law reform should address gaps on forced marriage, link legal remedies to quality support services and protection from family violence, and clarify state obligations and resources for girls at risk.

They call for more consistent and proportionate use of child marriage and sexual offence laws, safeguards against their misuse in consensual adolescent relationships, and stronger, accountable roles for legal functionaries such as child marriage prohibition officers. The study argues that evidence from case law must guide debates on raising the legal age of marriage and on voiding underage marriages, so reforms do not unintentionally deepen harm or reduce options for girls