(Image source from: TelanganaToday.Com)

TS Govt To Curb Illegal Contract Marriages In City : Deputy CM Mahmood Ali:- To curb illegal contract marriages, the Telangana State government is making all efforts to bring legislation or regulatory guidelines, said Deputy Chief Minister Mohammad Mahmood Ali on Friday. The illegal marriages are being performed by qazis in old city.

Ali stated that measures to curb illegal contract marriages in old city have already been initiated by the government. In reply to a question by MLC M.S. Prabhakar Rao during Question Hour in the Legislative Council, Mr. Ali said, besides suspending four qazis for performing illegal marriages, around nine cases were booked in the city between 2011 and 2017. The issue was not only a social menance, but was not just confined to law and order.

By offering paltry amount, the poor Muslim girls and their families were exploited by the Sheikhs from Middle East countries, said TRS MLC P. Rajeshwar Reddy. The young girls are left in the lurch by Sheikhs, by breaking the marriage within few days, he said. The Sheikhs are mostly aged over 70 years. By arranging the deals, the middlemen were making huge money and to accommodate the sheikhs, flats in areas like Chandrayangutta were being transformed into guest houses, he further added.

To curb the illegal contract marriages being performed by the qazi, MIM MLC Syed Amin Jaffri said his party would support all measures. He added that in Gulf Cooperation Council countries, some guidelines including the mandatory age difference between the bride and bridegroom and financial support to the girls’ families are followed. The the existing rules in India were over 140 years old and in consultation with the External Affairs Ministry, there was a need to formulate new rules, added the MLC. In this regard, the MLC also favored appointment of a special committee, involving legal experts and religious heads.

Stressing on the importance of the issue, Finance Minister E. Rajender, said during the current session, a special discussion should be conducted in the House, to discuss the measures to be adopted and the modalities for effective implementation of the guidelines. The move was welcomed by the Leader of Opposition, Mohd. Shabbir Ali. He further appealed to the Council Chairman K. Swamy Goud to hold a special discussion.

A meeting will be held with floor leaders of all parities and the agenda and date will be announced to the members, said the Chairman on a positive note.

SUPRAJA