SMH! This MLA Asked Why Increase Minimum Age Of Marriage When 15-Year-Olds Can Reproduce

It was just yesterday that we talked about MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s brilliant idea of tracking women so as to ensure their safety. And as primitive as it did sound, in today’s episode of ‘Who’s The Most Regressive Of Them All’ we have a solid contender, all set to give Chouhan a run for his money.

Well, let’s do a quick recap here. It was during an awareness program for women’s safety in MP that Chouhan pitched the idea of tracking women. And while it was as ludicrous as it could get, the minister also talked about raising the minimum age of marriage for women from 18 to 21. This actually is a great proposal and can, in fact, help a number of women pursue higher education and careers without any pressure to get married.

However, MLA Sajjan Singh Verma, an opposition party’s leader, doesn’t agree. In fact, if it were for him, the age would have been further lowered to 15 by now. At least that is what his reaction to Chouhan’s proposal suggests. Here is what he had to say in response to MP CM’s proposal of increasing the minimum age for marriage for women: “Doctors say that even a 15-years-old girl can reproduce, then what is the need to increase the marriage age of girls to 21 years? Has Shivraj become a bigger doctor.”

Okay, slow claps to that first! Also, we insist that you watch him talk. Please!

#WATCH | According to doctors, a girl is ready for reproduction by the age of 15. Is the CM a doctor or a scientist? So, on what basis does girls' marriage age should be increased to 21 from 18: Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma in Bhopal pic.twitter.com/sVF1UyeLra

— ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2021

Hard to guess whether he’s talking about women or cattle here, right? I mean who cares about women’s education, careers, safety, consent, etc.! Aren’t we all being raised to be married off and produce children as soon as we hit puberty? Seriously, it’s on us if we still expect to feel safe in a country where the political leaders think that women have no purpose but to reproduce.

Wait till someone goes to Verma and tells him that it isn’t as easy as equating marriage with children and women with baby-making machines. Also, can’t help but wonder how’d he react when one of these days he gets to hear that some women CHOOSE not to have children at all.

But wait. In the same statement (and the biggest self own of 2021), Verma also accused the MP state of failing to protect minor girls. “Madhya Pradesh tops in the number of rapes against minors. Instead of taking strict action in such cases, the chief minister is playing politics full of hypocrisy,” he said. Wow! Can he hear himself?

via GIPHY

Does he realise that the same people who hear sentence #1 uttered by him would also hear #2, that there has to be a logical coherence in what he speaks? Seriously, you cannot speak about minor girls as reproductive machines and then sound worried about their well-being. It’s legit because of people like him that minor girls are unsafe and it’s also because of mindsets like his that we need to review the minimum age of marriage for women in India.

Well, the netizens are equally flabbergasted by Verma and his ludicrous comments. Here’s what they have to say: