The government has started preparations to revise the existing law on child marriage. At present, the government is preparing to make some amendments to the legal system of annulment of marriages that have not reached the legal age, and only impose penalties without annulment of such marriages.

The Criminal Code, 2074 prohibits child marriage. Section 173 of the Code provides for the prohibition of child marriage. In the Samhita, it is said that no one should get married before the age of twenty years. Such a marriage is said to be automatically annulled. A person who commits the crime of child marriage is punished with imprisonment up to three years and a fine of up to 30,000 rupees. 

The Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs has proposed an amendment to the current provision of the Code related to child marriage. In the draft proposal of the bill to amend the Criminal Code, 2074 prepared by the Ministry, the subject of 'child marriage' has been removed and it has been called 'underage marriage'. The marriageable age limit for both men and women has been kept at 20 years. Underage marriage is considered a crime and punishment is set according to age group. 

A marriage of a person under the age of 16 is said to be automatically void. Apart from that, it is proposed to impose a one-year imprisonment or a fine of up to 10,000 rupees for marriage between persons above 16 years of age and below 18 years of age. Similarly, there is a proposal to impose only a fine of up to 5000 rupees in case of marriage between persons above 18 years of age and up to 20 years of age. If a person above 16 years of age and less than 20 years of age marry by mutual consent, if such person agrees to live separately until he reaches the age of 20, then such person will not be punished. It is said in the draft of the bill that they can be released after the investigation officer has produced a document. 

If a person who was married before reaching the age specified by the law wants to annul the marriage after reaching the age of 20, the provision can be annulled within 35 days from the date of reaching the age of 20. However, the marriage will not be annulled if the child is born or the wife is pregnant. On the one hand, the law ministry has brought a new proposal as there are two types of debates on whether the marriage age should be lowered and whether it should not be lowered. 

The sub-committee under the Law, Justice and Human Rights Committee of the House of Representatives suggested that the marriage age should be reduced from 20 to 18 years on January 2. The sub-committee that studied the state of implementation of the laws made by the Parliament in three different provinces gave the opinion that it is practical to reduce the age of marriage.

MPs in the sub-committee said that marriages under the age of 20 are prosecuted not only for child marriages but also for cases such as kidnapping, body hostages, and coercion. Similarly, the sub-committee understood that there were problems in the practical implementation of the present law and that it brought more challenges as there were problems in matters such as the birth registration of children born from underage marriages. 

However, the National Commission for Women has objected to such a report prepared by the parliamentary sub-committee. The Commission has said that the legal system that the age of marriage should be 20 should not be amended even after a decade of implementation. Joint Secretary Komal Bahadur Khatri, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Law, says that there is a debate on whether to keep the marriage age as it is or to lower it.

Based on the practical problems seen in the implementation of the law and the suggestions received from various fields, it is proposed to reduce the punishment for the crime of underage marriage, he said. "From various studies and suggestions, the need to amend the Criminal Code has been seen," he said, "that's why the ministry has proposed a draft bill to amend the code." We will finalize it after a lot of debate and discussion.' 

'Romeo and Juliet Clause'

Apart from the subject of marriage, the Ministry has prepared a proposal to include some provisions in the Code according to the internationally recognized 'Romeo and Juliet Clause'. Such a proposal has been made in the case of a minor for the offense of coercion under Section 219 of the Civil Penal Code. If both the victim and the defendant are minors and the age difference between them is three years or less, it is proposed to punish them for up to three years. In the draft, there is a proposal of half the punishment for the crime of coercion if the person who has reached the age of 16 and has not reached the age of 18 is consensual.

The Criminal Justice Administration Reform Study and Suggestion Report has also recommended that consensual sexual relations should not be punished according to the crimes of other rapists. In such a case, the report suggested that a lesser punishment should be provided in accordance with the international practice "Romeo and Juliet Law" instead of harsh punishment. Spokesman Khatri says that it is proposed to reduce the sentence because it is not recognized that people of the same age who are minors can lure or exploit each other.

It has been proposed that consensual sexual intercourse between minors should be treated as a common offence. "Youth is the age of emotional flow," he said, "The Romeo and Juliet Clause has been tried to keep in mind the negative impact of punishing those who consented at that age like other criminals."

The Civil Code of Crimes issued in 2074 came into effect on August 1, 2075. The government formed a committee headed by the then Attorney General Dinmani Pokharel to study and recommend timely changes and reforms in criminal law and criminal justice administration. Based on the suggestions given by the said committee, suggestions received from the parliamentary committee, court, police and various agencies, the ministry has prepared a draft amendment to the code. 

The issue of rape of women

In the proposed draft, a new system has been put in place to punish women for rape. The existing law carries the recognition that only men commit forced labor and accordingly, only men are punished for it.

Considering the fact that not only men commit rape, but also rape by women, it is now proposed that both women and men be punished for rape. Similarly, it is said that after revising the system that only men are punished for having polygamy, women will also be charged with polygamy.

It is also proposed to reduce the quantum of punishment for marital rape. In Section 219(4) of the Code, it is said that if a husband commits forced sexual intercourse with his wife while the marital relationship continues, he will be imprisoned for up to five years. In the draft prepared for amendment, it is said that if someone commits forced labor while the marital relationship is still in place, he will be imprisoned for up to three years.