Assam tables bill to ban polygamy

The Assam government on Tuesday tabled a bill in the Assembly to ban polygamy.

The draft proposes up to seven years of imprisonment for persons convicted of polygamy, the practice of having more than one wife. Further, those found guilty of having concealed their previous marriage can face punishment of up to ten years’ imprisonment.

The bill also states that if parents, priests or village heads hide a polygamous marriage from the police, or “unreasonably” delay providing such information to the authorities, they would also be held liable for abetting the offence.

Further, a priest who knowingly solemnises a polygamous marriage can be punished with imprisonment of up to two years.

The 2025 Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill was introduced even as MLAs from the Opposition Congress, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Raijor Dal were absent, PTI reported. The legislators had staged a walkout following a discussion on the death of singer Zubeen Garg.

While the bill was tabled on Tuesday, it will be taken up for discussion later in the Winter Session.

The Cabinet had approved the bill on November 9.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said at the time that the proposed legislation exempts Scheduled Tribe communities.

Sarma had also said that the law will also not “immediately” apply to areas under the Bodoland Territorial Council, the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council and the Dima Hasao Autonomous Council under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

Eight out of Assam’s thirty-five districts are part of the three councils.

The Sixth Schedule guarantees protection for land and nominal autonomy for citizens in designated tribal-dominated areas.

The law will apply to everyone else in the state, the chief minister had said, but added that Muslims residing in a Sixth Schedule area prior to 2005 will be exempted.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader had said that the state government will also create a fund to compensate the victims of polygamy. “The government will help with financial support in the required cases so that no woman faces hardship in her life,” PTI had quoted him as saying on November 9.

The chief minister has for long advocated a ban on polygamy, often framing it as a practice exclusive to the Muslim community. Sarma has said the intended ban on polygamy was to empower Muslim women in the state.

Several activists, scholars and women from the community have welcomed the decision to ban the practice in principle. However, many are apprehensive about it being a measure to criminalise the community.

Polygamy is allowed in Muslim personal law. The practice was banned among Hindus in the 1950s through the Hindu Code Bill, which also regulates aspects such as inheritance, adoption, marriage and divorce.

The push to criminalise polygamy is also often used as a justification by Hindutva organisations to introduce a Uniform Civil Code.

The code is a common set of laws governing marriage, divorce, succession and adoption for all citizens. Currently, such personal affairs of different religious and tribal groups are based on community-specific laws, largely derived from religious scripture.

The introduction of a common personal law has long been on the BJP’s agenda and several states ruled by the Hindutva party have been taking steps towards implementing it.

In January, the Uttarakhand government implemented the Uniform Civil Code, making it the first state to do so after Independence. A common civil code has been in place in Goa since the Portuguese Civil Code was adopted in 1867.

In its campaign for the Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand, the BJP had mainly targeted the Muslim personal law, arguing that it discriminates against women as it allows Muslim men to practice polygamy, inherit a greater share of property, initiate divorce and deny alimony.

Also read: In Assam, Muslim women cautiously welcome move to outlaw polygamy