LAHORE: A Punjab Assembly committee on Monday deferred the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 after an exhaustive, clause-by-clause examination that broadly endorsed sweeping reforms to curb early marriages, while calling for wider consultation owing to the issue’s religious sensitivity.
The committee took up Bill No 12 of 2026, which seeks to replace key provisions of the colonial-era Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929 with a more stringent and contemporary legal framework to prevent child marriages across Punjab.
At the heart of the proposed law is the redefinition of a “child” as any male or female below 18 years of age, removing the long-standing distinction under which females could legally marry at 16. The draft bill proposes a significant escalation, prescribing imprisonment ranging from two to three years and fines up to Rs500,000. While the bill prescribes simple imprisonment of up to one year and a fine of Rs100,000 for a nikah registrar, the committee recommended broadening the scope to include any individual who performs, conducts, directs or facilitates a child marriage.
The draft assigns cases to the Court of Session; however, the committee recommended that family courts vested with the powers of a first-class judicial magistrate should instead hear such matters.
It introduces a major shift by categorising offences as cognisable, non bailable and non compoundable, replacing the current classification of non-cognisable and bailable offences. The introduction of a 90-day timeframe for the conclusion of trials was also welcomed as a corrective to delays under the existing law, which prescribes no such limit. The committee recommended that an appellate mechanism be incorporated.
The absence of any mechanism for rescue, recovery and rehabilitation of affected children was also highlighted. The committee decided to defer the bill for further consultation. It will remain pending until the next , where it is expected to be taken up again for continued discussion and possible refinement before being presented to the assembly for passage.
