Tanvi Pilane
Published on: March 15, 2022 at 22:38 IST
A Bombay High Court Bench of Justice MS Karnik and Chief Justice (CJ) Dipankar Datta on Monday directed District Collectors and Magistrates across Maharashtra to conduct a survey and identify areas where instances of Child Marriages are prevalent.
The Bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) Petition which raised concerns about the Malnutrition Deaths in Tribal Areas of Maharashtra.
The issue of the Prevalence of child marriages in the Tribal Pockets which lead to pregnancies was brought up by the Chief Justice. Early pregnancies may be a probable cause of malnutrition according to the Chief Justice.
The Chief Justice observed that even though Tribal Areas have their own Customs and Practices, girl children may be protected if the people in the Tribal Belts are sensitized about the Law and how it is in their interest.
It was submitted by the Petitioner that child marriages are prevalent in 16 such pockets. The Petitioner’s were directed by the Bench to submit the names of the Districts that were Prone to these issues.
Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni argued that constant efforts were being made by the state to make healthcare possible and sensitize the population.
He pointed out that along with child marriage, there were many other issues prevalent amongst the people such as the lack of family planning and awareness about birth control.
It was brought to the notice of the Court, that the Court had passed several Orders and Directions to address the issue since 1993 when the first (Public Interest Litigation) highlighting the Issue of Malnutrition was filed in the Court.
The Court also stated that what is important was the welfare of people and accountability of expense is not the main concern.
The Court said, “Accountability of spending a single rupee is our secondary concern. The Primary concern is the Welfare and well-being of the people.”
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