The Assam government has made more than one marriage a crime by passing the Polygamy Bill. The offender may face jail and fine. Along with this, if anyone breaks the law, his government job and voting rights will also be abolished.
Guwahati/New Delhi. Assam government passed the polygamy bill on Thursday 27 November. This means that now marrying more than one person in Assam will be a crime and the person doing so will have to go to jail. The Himanta government of Assam has passed the Prohibition of Polygamy Bill, 2025 with the aim of curbing multiple marriages. However, it is not yet clear when this bill will be implemented as law.
What’s in the polygamy bill?
According to this new bill of the Assam government, if a person is already married and he marries more than once or his previous marriage is not legally ended, then it will be counted in the category of crime. Anyone doing this may have to face imprisonment of up to 7 years and a fine. Apart from this, the victim will have to pay a separate compensation of Rs 1.40 lakh. At the same time, if a person marries another person by hiding his present marriage, he can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
Who got the exemption?
Assam’s polygamy law will not apply to 6th Schedule and Scheduled Tribes. The government believes that relaxation has been given keeping in mind the local traditions of these areas. When the bill was being discussed, CM Himanta urged the opposition parties to withdraw their amendment proposals. CM said that banning polygamy will strengthen the position of women in the society. This law will not apply to any one community, but equally to all.
Anyone who conducts more than one marriage will also be guilty
Let us tell you that the one who promotes the law of polygamy and conducts more than one marriage will be considered as guilty as the person who commits it. That means, if any priest, Qazi, father or anyone else is involved in this, he will also be punished. Such people will have to face imprisonment of up to 2 years and a fine of Rs 1 lakh.
If caught you will also lose your government job
If a person is found guilty of committing or committing polygamy, he will have to lose his government job. Also, he will not be able to avail the benefit of any kind of government scheme in future. Apart from this, there will be no right to vote in local body elections.