Assam Polygamy Ban Under Fire: Congress Claims Political Motive Behind Move

Sarma indicated the proposed legislation would criminalize polygamy with penalties of up to seven years imprisonment.

Guwahati:

Debabrata Saikia, Opposition Leader in the Assam Assembly and prominent Congress figure, has launched a sharp critique of the BJP-led government's recently approved anti-polygamy Bill on Monday, describing it as politically calculated and designed to project an artificial sense of national cohesion.

Saikia's rebuke comes in the wake of the Assam Cabinet giving its approval to the Bill on Sunday.

"The BJP is attempting to create an impression that they've successfully unified India," Saikia stated. "The Uniform Civil Code was deliberately positioned within the Directive Principles of State Policy - intended for implementation only when consensus exists across all societal segments. Nevertheless, the BJP wishes to demonstrate that they have united India and accomplished what Congress failed to achieve in 75 years."

He further pointed out that the exclusion of tribal and Sixth Schedule territories from the Bill undermines the BJP's narrative of national unification. "Such a selective approach doesn't constitute creating a united India," Saikia observed.

The Assam Cabinet endorsed the Bill prohibiting polygamy within the state on Sunday, as announced by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma following a Cabinet session at Lok Sewa Bhawan in Guwahati.

Sarma explained that the proposed legislation would criminalize polygamy, carrying potential imprisonment of up to seven years and provisions for compensating female victims.

However, the Chief Minister clarified that the Bill would exempt the Scheduled Tribe (ST) population and would not immediately apply to Assam's six Scheduled Areas. "It will affect everyone except tribal communities," Sarma affirmed. He also mentioned that certain exemptions would apply to minority Muslim residents in Scheduled Areas established before 2005, who will remain outside the law's jurisdiction.