MUMBAI: In order to promote and protect inter-caste marriages and to encourage a casteless society, the Maharashtra government is working on framing a new Inter-Caste Marriage Act on the lines of the one framed by Chhatrapati Shahu Maharajof Kolhapur.
Under the proposed law, the state will provide financial aid to couples who go in for inter-caste marriages. There will also be a provision giving such couples priority in employment.
Rajkumar Badole, state social justice minister and chairperson of a nine-member committee that has been formed to work on framing the law, said, “Till date, the government has provided various financial incentives to encourage inter-case marriages. However, many couples and families are subjected to various atrocities for having dared to go against societal norms. This law is to provide them protection and secure their children’s future.”
The committee has already held three meetings, he said. Its members include BJP legislators Bhai Girkar (MLC) and Mangal Prabhat Lodha (MLC).
Justice (retd) C L Thool, who is also a member, said it was Shahu Maharaj, a visionary king of Kolhapur, who first enacted a law to encourage inter-caste marriages so as to eradicate social inequality and destroy barriers of caste.
“Post-independence, it was Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar who through the Constitution and the Hindu Code Bill tried to bring in equality and end discrimination in caste and gender. He wanted to give women their rights, but the Hindu Code Bill, when introduced, was strongly opposed, and he resigned from the cabinet,” he said. n 1954, the Centre enacted the Special Marriages Act to encourage inter-caste and inter-religious marriages to eradicate the caste system, but it has not been successful, said Justice Thool.
“Caste consciousness is strong. Often it is family members who are against such marriages and commit these crimes. The objective of the proposed law is to prevent honour killings, dowry deaths and destruction of inter-caste marriages. This law will serve as a deterrent. It will provide for imprisonment along with fines,” he said.
Journalist Madhu Kamble, another committee member, said among the proposals being considered is how to encourage inter-caste couples not to mention caste on their children’s birth certificate. “It would help the country move towards a casteless society,” he said.
Raosaheb Kasbe, a Dalit intellectual, said it was the responsibility of the government to encourage inter-caste marriages. “It is a positive step. Unless caste disappears India will never be a nation,” he said.