Guwahati, Oct 4 (PTI) Police have arrested 915 people out of 1,100 allegedly involved in child marriages in the second phase of the drive against the social menace in Assam, DGP GP Singh said here on Wednesday.
Altogether 710 cases have been registered in the second phase of arrests which began on Monday evening, the DGP told reporters.
Among the 915 arrested, 546 are husbands of girls who were married off as children, 353 are relatives and 16 are solemnisers of marriages, he said.
A field study had found that incidences of child marriages had declined considerably as compared to the situation before the crackdown in the first phase in February this year, he said.
In the first phase, a total of 4,515 cases were registered and 3,483 persons were arrested, he said.
Out of the total cases registered in the first phase, 95.5 per cent have been already chargesheeted, Singh said.
Following the launch of the second phase of the statewide crackdown against child marriages, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had on Tuesday said 1,039 people have been arrested but the figure was likely to go up as the drive continued till late Tuesday.
The highest of 192 arrests have taken place in Dhubri district, followed by 143 in Barpeta, 50 in Kamrup while in the three districts of Karimganj, Hailakandi and Cachar in Barak Valley, it was 47, 40 and 34, respectively.
The DGP said the chief minister has given specific instruction for continuation of the drive till the menace is completely eradicated from the state.
On September 11, Sarma had told the Assam Assembly that a total of 3,907 people were arrested in cases related to child marriages in the last five years, of whom 3,319 are facing charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO).
However, courts have so far convicted only 62 people in cases against child marriage, he had added.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, have maintained that child marriage cannot be forcibly stopped with the help of police but sustained campaigns, involving all stakeholders, must continue to bring an end to this menace.
The chief minister had earlier said child marriages would be completely eliminated by 2026 and all gram panchayat secretaries will be designated as child marriage prevention officers.