INTRODUCTION:
In India, the minimum legal age for marriage for women is 18 years, and for men it is 21 years, which is governed by the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA),2006[1]. The act applies across India and serves as the primary legislation regulating child marriages. Any marriage that doesn’t meet the minimum age criteria is considered to be a child marriage as per the act, which is legally voidable. Adults involved in such marriages can be punished with rigorous imprisonment of up to 2 years and hefty fines. The legal age of marriage has always been a debatable issue, as it explicitly treats men and women differently, and the clash between the age of marriage and the age of maturity remains unresolved.
When the law treats an 18-year-old individual as an adult, capable of entering into contracts, voting, and exercising various other constitutional rights, why is there a higher age limit for marriage, that too, exclusively for men? Is it the financial stability, emotional maturity, or social readiness that provides a rational basis for such an age limit?
This legal blog focuses on answering such questions and rethinking the legal age of marriage in India.
TRACING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LEGAL AGE OF MARRIAGE IN INDIA
The Legal Age of Marriage in India was not set all at once; it gradually evolved as a part of the State’s efforts to eliminate the social evils of child marriage. India’s first legislation to set a minimum legal age for marriage was the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929[2](popularly known as the Sharda Act), which fixed the minimum age of marriage for men as 18 and for women as 14. Post independence, the Act was amended to raise the age of marriage for women from 14 to 15. It was further amended in 1978, and the current limits were adopted. In 2006, the Parliament enacted the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act.[3](PCMA) to have a more comprehensive legal framework on child marriage. However, the act fully retained the set age limits for marriage.[4].
Judicial precedents have also played a significant role in shaping the discourse surrounding the minimum age of marriage. In Hardev Singh v. Harpreet Kaur & Ors. (2020)[5], the court justified the 21-year age limit for men, considering the financial stability and economic maturity, presuming men to be the sole breadwinners of the family. Further, in cases like Independent Thought v. Union of India (2017)[6] and Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action (SEVA) v. Union of India (2024 )[7]The apex court has stressed upon the significance of the minimum age of marriage to protect the Right to Life, Health, and Personal liberty under Article 21[8].
ADVOCACY FOR ALTERNATIVE REFORMS
There have been several Public Interest Litigations (PILs) filed in the Apex Court, seeking to equalise the legal age of marriage at 21 for both men and women, but the petitions were dismissed, and the court held that it is the work of Parliament. In response, Parliament did introduce a bill, the Prohibition of Child Marriage(Amendment) Bill 2021[9], to raise the legal age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 to match men. However, the bill was sent to the Parliamentary Standing Committee for closer scrutiny and had multiple timeline extensions. The bill was never passed; it officially lapsed when the respective Lok Sabha dissolved.
The idea of equalising the age of marriage to 21 years was supported for several reasons; Firstly, critics argue that the existing law violates the constitutional mandate of gender equality under Article 14[10], reflecting the age-old patriarchal stereotypes that women mature faster than men and that women do not need an equal level of education and economic maturity in parity with men before marriage. Early marriages directly cause premature pregnancies, affecting the physical and emotional well-being of women. Further, it has resulted in a high Maternal Mortality Rate(MMR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)[11]. Raising the legal age for marriage from 18 to 21 would allow women to mature both physically and emotionally.
While most reform efforts have focused on increasing the minimum age of marriage for women to twenty-one years, an alternative group of critics advocates for the opposite approach: reducing the age of marriage for men from twenty-one to eighteen years. According to the Indian Majority Act, 1875[12]an individual upon attaining the age of 18 years is considered to be an adult capable of voting, entering into contracts, and being sued and to sue. However, an adult man can get married only upon attaining the age of 21, while an adult woman can marry upon attaining the age of 18, violating Article 14(Right to Equality)[13], 21[14](Right to Life and Personal Liberty), and Article 19(1)(a)[15]( Right to freedom of speech and expression) of the Indian Constitution. Also, the proponents of this idea argue that the current 3-year gap is deeply rooted in the patriarchal stereotypes prevalent in society.[16]. Equalising the age of marriage by reducing the minimum age for men from 21 to 18 would help to eliminate such gender based stereotypes.
CONCLUSION:
The primary purpose of prescribing a minimum legal age for marriage is to prevent child marriages and the various social evils associated with them. While a man who has attained the age of majority is legally competent to vote, enter into contracts, sue, and be sued, marriage involves far greater responsibilities that require a certain degree of financial stability, emotional maturity, and social readiness. Unlike voting or contracting, marriage is a long-term institution that affects not only the individuals involved but also their families and society at large. Although the right to choose One’s partner, bodily autonomy, and personal liberty form an integral part of Article 21[17] of the Constitution, these rights do not necessarily justify lowering the age of marriage. However, maintaining a lower marriageable age for women than for men reflects patriarchal stereotypes and reinforces gender inequality. Such a distinction lacks a convincing constitutional justification in contemporary society.
Therefore, Parliament shall reintroduce and enact the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill[18] to equalise the legal age of marriage at twenty-one years for both men and women, thereby ensuring the principles of gender equality, individual dignity, and social welfare.
Author(s) Name : S.Lakshana (CHRIST(Deemed to be University), Bangalore, Karnataka)
References:
[1] Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006
[2] Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929
[3] Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006
[4] A Srivastava, ‘History of Child Marriage Laws in India: Story Till Now’ (2025) Indian Journal of Law and Society Issues https://www.ijlsi.com/wp-content/uploads/History-of-Child-Marriage-Laws-in-India-Story-till-Now.pdf
[5] Hardev Singh v Harpreet Kaur and Others (2020) 1 RCR (Criminal) 238 (SC
[6] Independent Thought v Union of India (2017) 10 SCC 800; AIR 2017 SC 4904.
[7] Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action (SEVA) v Union of India WP (C) No 382 of 2013 (SC, 2024)
[8] Constitution of India 1950, art 21
[9] Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021
[10] Constitution of India 1950, art 14
[11] Ministry of Women and Child Development, Report of the High-Level Task Force to Examine the Correlation of Age of Marriage and Motherhood (Government of India 2020
[12] Indian Majority Act,1875
[13] Constitution of India 1950, art 14
[14] Constitution of India 1950, art 21
[15] Constitution of India 1950, art 19(1)(a)
[16] Madhu Mehra, Modi Govt Considers Lowering Marriage Age for Males: Can Indian Men Handle it at 18? (Partners for Law in Development Advocacy Papers, 2021)
[17] Constitution of India 1950, art 21
[18] Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021
