Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Jan 27: Despite awareness that child marriage is illegal and several measures taken by the government to curb the practice, violations of the law continue to pose a major challenge in Karnataka. With the coordinated efforts of the women and child welfare department, the child protection department and the police, a total of 8,355 complaints related to child marriage were registered in the state between 2023 and 2025.

Of these, authorities successfully prevented 6,157 child marriages. However, despite sustained awareness campaigns, 2,198 child marriages still took place during the three-year period, and as many as 2,170 FIRs were registered in connection with these cases.

A look at district-wise data for 2025 shows that Belagavi recorded 44 cases, Ballari 23, Chitradurga 64, Kolar 62, Shivamogga 57, Chikkamagaluru 19, Chikkaballapur 16, Bengaluru Rural 8, Bagalkot 7, while Davanagere and Vijayapura recorded 14 cases each.

Although the Child Marriage Prohibition Act, 2006, its 2016 amendment, and the Karnataka Rules are in force, the practice continues due to a lack of change in parental mindset and insufficient social awareness. This has resulted in the issue not being brought fully under control, highlighting a serious social concern.