BJP lawmaker from Madhya Pradesh’s Agar Malwa, Gopal Parmar, on Saturday told parents that getting their daughters married early could save them from love jihad. Love jihad is a term used by right wing groups to indicate relationship between a Hindu woman and a Muslim man.
Addressing a function in his constituency, Parmer said, “Earlier, elders in the family arranged marriages when their children were very young, and those marriages lasted longer. Since the 18-year “disease” started, girls have started eloping as a result of the love jihad fever.” Eighteen years is the legal age of a woman’s marriage.
He added that many school girls were fooled by the politeness of these men. “As girls reach adolescence, their minds start wandering. I urge mothers to remain vigilant of the love jihad.”
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Later, Malwa clarified his comment on the legal age of marriage. “The government’s intention in fixing the legal age of marriage at 18 is different. But children’s marriages were earlier fixed during their childhood in the villages so they wouldn’t take wrong decisions knowing that their marriage had been fixed already,” it was reported.
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