The House also praised the Balochistan Assembly for passing the Child Marriage Prohibition Bill, 2025.
An archive photograph of the Sindh Assembly. PHOTO: PPI
KARACHI:
The Sindh Assembly on Tuesday unanimously adopted a resolution urging the federal and provincial governments to set a uniform minimum age of marriage of 18 years for girls and boys across the country.
The resolution, proposed by PPP MPA Maleeha Manzoor, received resounding support from both Treasury and the opposition, reflecting a rare cross-party consensus on a critical human rights issue.
Lawmakers welcomed President Asif Ali Zardari’s recent approval of the Child Marriage Restriction Bill, 2025 for the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), which legally sets 18 years as the minimum age for marriage. The House also praised the Balochistan Assembly for passing the Child Marriage Prohibition Bill, 2025, adopting the same standard and criminalizing child marriage across the province.
The resolution proudly recalled that Sindh became the first province to legislate against child marriage through the Sindh Child Marriage Restriction Act, 2013, underlining its long-standing commitment to the dignity, well-being and protection of children, particularly girls.
In his speech in the house, Manzoor praised the PPP leadership for leading these progressive reforms at both the provincial and federal levels.
The resolution also reiterated Pakistan’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), emphasizing that a uniform definition of a child is essential for equal protection in all provinces. “A child remains a child regardless of province or region, and uniform legislation is not just a legal necessity: it is a moral and constitutional responsibility,” Manzoor added.
The House reaffirmed that harmonizing child marriage laws across the country is crucial to comply with constitutional guarantees, honor international commitments, and ensure the physical and mental well-being of every child. The assembly urged the remaining provinces to promptly adopt similar legislation to help eliminate child marriage across Pakistan.
JI resolution on law and order rejected
The Sindh Assembly on Tuesday rejected a resolution moved by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) seeking a debate on what it called the province’s “deteriorating law and order situation”, even as the House passed other opposition-backed resolutions, including one demanding a public holiday on the death anniversary of Pakistan’s first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan and another against the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco). The session, chaired by Vice President Naveed Anthony, marked Private Members’ Day, allowing non-government lawmakers to table resolutions.
JI’s Muhammad Farooq, presenting his resolution, warned that citizens were living in fear and urged the government to restore public safety. “Crime is increasing and people don’t feel protected,” he said.
