Under the pretext of a community meeting, nearly 50 child marriages were solemnized in a grand ceremony in Ajmer city in Rajasthan of India, local TV channel NDTV reported Friday.
The ceremony was witnessed by thousands of people from the Gujjar community. Rajasthan is the largest state of the India in terms of area, just to the south of capital New Delhi.
The incident took place on Thursday, when people from 52 villages came together allegedly to demand tribal status for their community.
All customs related to Hindu marriage were performed with grand celebration and gaiety, but the administration came to know about it only when pictures were splashed in local dailies on Friday.
"If allegations are confirmed, stringent action would be taken against those who are responsible for the event," Naveen Mahajan, the collector of Ajmer said.
"Additional District Collector has been asked to investigate the matter and submit a report by Monday," he said.
The event has caused concern to social activists who alleged that despite tall claims by the government of reducing child marriages, the age-old custom is still practiced in the state.
"Though there are laws in place to stop it, no necessary steps are being taken to prevent this evil practice," alleged Namita, a social worker.
A majority of child marriages reportedly take place in the rural areas of Rajasthan.
Rajasthan has taken a big leap forward in female literacy from 20 percent in 1991 to over 44 percent in 2001. But a lot needs to be done still as it is these practices that do not allow female literacy to go up, said an activist Vinita.
Source: Xinhua
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