The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 does not criminalize betrothals, only marriages.

1. The accused persons involved in Crime No. 150 of 2022 of Mayyil police station filed this petition praying for quashing all further proceedings against them in C.C. No. 171 of 2022 on the file of Judicial Magistrate of First Class - III(Mobile), Kannur. The offences alleged are under S.9, S.10, S.11 and S.13(10) of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 (in short 'the Act').

2. The prosecution case is that between 1.00 p.m. on 11/02/2022 and 6.00 a.m 12/02/2022, at the residence of the accused Nos. 1 and 2 at Malappattam, in violation of the court order, the betrothal of CW2 with the 3rd accused was conducted by accused Nos.1 and 2 with the knowledge and concurrence of the 4th accused and thereby they are alleged to have committed the aforesaid offences.

3. According to the learned counsel for the petitioners, what is prohibited under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 is the conduct of a marriage and not betrothal and as such the offences alleged against the petitioners are not made out in this case. Therefore, he prayed for quashing all further proceedings against the petitioners.

4. The petition was strongly opposed by the learned Public Prosecutor. According to the learned Public Prosecutor, a betrothal also will come within the sweep of S.13(1) of the Act, especially with regard to the marriage which is about to be solemnised and that forcing a minor to enter into a betrothal will adversely affect her right of personal agency, mental and emotional state and adolescence. Therefore, he prayed for dismissing the petition.

5. S.9 of the Act provides punishment for male adult marrying a child. S.10 provides punishment for solemnizing a child marriage. S.11 provides Punishment for promoting or permitting solemnization of child marriages. S.13(1) reads as follows :
"Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Act, if, on an application of the Child Marriage Prohibition Officer or on receipt of information through a complaint or otherwise from any person, a Judicial Magistrate of the first class or a Metropolitan Magistrate is satisfied that a child marriage in contravention of this Act has been arranged or is about to be solemnised, such Magistrate shall issue an injunction against any person including a member of an organisation or an association of persons prohibiting such marriage."

6. S.13(10) of the Act states that, whoever knowing that an injunction has been issued under sub-section (1) against him disobeys such injunction shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to one lakh rupees or with both.

7. On a perusal of S.9, S.10 and S.11 of the Act, it is revealed that those provisions applies only in cases of a child marriage after it is solemnized. In the instant case, even according to the prosecution, no child marriage was solemnized, but only a betrothal was held.

8. The order passed by the Judicial Magistrate was against solemnization marriage and not betrothal. The learned counsel for the petitioners relied upon the decision of the Apex court in Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action & Anr. v. Union of India & Ors. (2024 SCC OnLine SC 2922) to argue that, as per the law of the land, there is no provision for punishing a betrothal of child marriage and hence in this case the offence under S.13(10) is also not attracted.

9. In paragraph 215 of the above decision, the Apex court held as follows :
"215. Lastly, we note that while the PCMA seeks to prohibit child marriages, it does not stipulate on betrothals. Marriages fixed in the minority of a child also have the effect of violati