Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA suggests child marriage to stop ‘love jihad’, elopement

BJP lawmaker from Madhya Pradesh Gopal Parmar on Saturday gave a shocking suggestion that child marriage will put an end to the incidnets of elopement and ‘love jihad’.

Parmar held late marriages responsible for girls running away with boys secretly to get married and fall prey to vices like ‘love jihad’ – a term used by right wing groups for marriages between a Hindu woman and a Muslim man.

"Ever since the 18-year 'disease' (legal age for a girl's marriage) became legal, many girls started eloping. As the girls reach adolescence, their mind starts wandering. I urge the mothers to remain vigilant of the love jihad," said Parmar.

“Earlier girls and boys used to marry before they turned 18 and 21. Marriages were fixed when they used to be of tender age, and did not go astray…or (they did not) think of anyone else. Now they meet at coaching classes and some fall prey to vices like ‘love jihad’,” the BJP MLA from Agar Malwa said.

When asked to explain, the MLA said, "There are some goonda elements in Muslims who adopt Hindu names to exploit girls in the name of Love Jihad. If marriages are fixed early then girls can be saved from Love Jihad.”