Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006

Polity & Governance glossary

Also called: PCMA · Topic: Safeguards for Vulnerable Sections: SCs, STs, OBCs, Minorities, Women and Children · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA) 2006 is a law that treats a girl below 18 and a boy below 21 as a "child". It makes a child marriage voidable (valid unless the person married as a child asks a court to cancel it). It also punishes an adult man who marries a child and anyone who performs, conducts or promotes such a marriage.

It matters because child marriage ends a girl's schooling, harms her health and exposes her to abuse. The Act is the main legal tool against it. The question of raising the girls' marriage age to 21, the same as for boys, is still debated after the 2021 Bill lapsed.

Explanation

Who is a "child" under the Act

A girl below 18 is a child.
A boy below 21 is a child.
So the Act sets different ages for girls and boys. The 2021 Bill tried to remove this gap ([1]).

Voidable, not void: what happens to the marriage

Most child marriages are voidable.
The marriage stays legally valid.
Only the person who was a minor at the time of marriage can choose to end it.
They do this by filing a petition to annul (cancel) the marriage in court.
Time limit: the annulment petition can be filed until two years after the person becomes an adult ([2]).
Some child marriages are void.
A void marriage never had any legal effect at all.
Under the Act, this applies only to special cases such as trafficking or the use of force.

Who is punished

An adult man who marries a child.
Anyone who performs, conducts or promotes a child marriage, for example a priest, a relative or an organiser.
The child is not the one punished. The law aims at the adults who make the marriage happen.

Enforcement machinery

States appoint Child Marriage Prohibition Officers. Their job is to:
prevent child marriages before they take place;
collect evidence so that offenders can be prosecuted;
make people aware of the law.
Limits in practice:
The marriage is not void by default, so many marriages stay valid unless the minor goes to court.
Social pressure often stops young people, especially girls, from filing an annulment petition within the time limit.

In the Constitution and practice

Constitutional base:
Art. 15(3) (Part III): the State may make special provisions for women and children. This supports a protective law like the PCMA.
Art. 39(f) (Part IV, DPSP, i.e. goals the State must follow when it makes laws but which courts cannot enforce): children must grow up in freedom and dignity and be protected from exploitation. It was reworded by the 42nd Amendment, 1976.
Art. 21A: free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14 (86th Amendment, 2002). Child marriage often pushes girls out of school, which works against this right.
International commitment: India ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1992.
Independent Thought v. Union of India (2017):
Rape law had a "marital exception": sex by a husband with his wife was not treated as rape.
The Supreme Court read down this exception for minor wives. Sex with a wife aged 15-18 is now rape.
This closed a gap between child-marriage law and criminal law.
Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action (SEVA) v. Union of India (October 2024):
The Supreme Court issued guidelines to prevent child marriage.
These cover awareness, special police units, trained officers and community action.
The judgment shows that the Act alone had not been enough. Enforcement needed a push from the Court.
The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021: 1. It proposed raising the marriage age for women from 18 to 21, the same as for men ([1]). 2. It would have extended the time to annul a marriage to five years after majority, i.e. up to age 23 ([1][2]). 3. It said the Act would override any other law, custom or practice. It also amended personal laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 and the Special Marriage Act 1954 ([1]). 4. On 21 December 2021 it was sent to the Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports ([1]). 5. It lapsed in 2024 when the 17th Lok Sabha was dissolved. The age for girls is still 18.
Supporting schemes: Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (launched 22 January 2015 at Panipat, Haryana) and Mission Shakti work on the root causes, keeping girls alive and in school.

Don't confuse with

Void marriage vs voidable marriage: under the PCMA, a child marriage is generally voidable (valid until the minor gets it annulled). It is void (never valid) only in special cases such as trafficking or force.
"Child" under PCMA vs "child" under POCSO 2012: the PCMA uses 18 for girls and 21 for boys. POCSO is gender-neutral and protects every person below 18.
Independent Thought (2017) vs SEVA (2024): Independent Thought made sex with a wife aged 15-18 rape. SEVA laid down guidelines to prevent child marriage.
PCMA 2006 (law in force) vs 2021 Amendment Bill (lapsed): the 21-for-women rule and the five-year annulment window came from the Bill, which lapsed in 2024. They are not law.

Prelims Hooks

Under PCMA 2006, a child is a girl below 18 or a boy below 21. A child marriage is voidable, not void.
The annulment petition can be filed until two years after the person becomes an adult ([2]). The 2021 Bill proposed five years (up to age 23) ([1][2]).
The 2021 Bill to raise women's marriage age to 21 went to the Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports (21 December 2021) ([1]). It lapsed in 2024 with the dissolution of the 17th Lok Sabha.
Child Marriage Prohibition Officers are appointed by states, not the Centre.
Case-principle pairs: Independent Thought (2017): sex with a wife aged 15-18 is rape. SEVA (October 2024): guidelines to prevent child marriage.
Trap: the 2021 Bill would have overridden personal laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 and the Special Marriage Act 1954 ([1]). The 2006 Act as it stands did not make that change.

Mains Points

Raising the girls' marriage age to 21:
For: it brings gender equality (Art. 14) between men and women. It also gives better health, education and job outcomes for young women.
Against: it may criminalise poor families and push marriages underground. The 2021 Bill lapsed without agreement.
Way forward: deal with root causes such as poverty, school dropout and safety through BBBP, Mission Shakti and Art. 21A, not only through penal law.
Strong law, weak enforcement:
Because marriages are voidable, the burden falls on the young person to go to court within a short time, often against family pressure.
The Supreme Court had to issue the SEVA (2024) guidelines on awareness, special police units and trained officers. This shows gaps in state capacity and in social norms.
One law vs personal laws:
The 2021 Bill said the PCMA would override any other law, custom or practice ([1]).
This raises a GS-II debate: a single child-protection standard for all, based on Art. 15(3) and Art. 39(f), versus respect for community personal laws.

Related concepts

Children: the girl child, child marriage, juvenile justice, POCSO and child labour

Sources

1PRS — The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021prsindia.org · tier 1
2PRS — Bill Summary: Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021 — )%20Bill,%202021%20Bill%20Summary.pdfprsindia.org · tier 1