Itanagar: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has expressed his personal readiness to ban polygamy in the state if recommended by the apex bodies of all tribes and community-based organizations (CBOs).
Responding to the Arunachal Pradesh Women’s Welfare Society (APWWS) appeal to the Governor to ban polygamy and bigamy in the state, Khandu stated that he is personally against the practice and believes it should end.
“Polygamy has been a longstanding tradition in tribal culture, often practiced for reasons such as having a larger family for farming and hunting. However, in the modern era, with education improving lives and sufficient resources for human survival, the practice should be discouraged,” the chief minister said.
Clarifying that his comments were personal and not official, Khandu urged the apex bodies of all tribes and community-based organizations in the state to take the initiative and discuss the issue involving intellectuals and send recommendations to the government.
“If we receive recommendations to ban polygamy from the apex bodies and CBOs, the government would be more than happy to do the same,” Khandu said.
The APWWS had recently written to Governor K T Parnaik to come up with urgent legislation to ban polygamy and bigamy in the state.
The society, citing recent incidents of violence and abuse linked to polygamous relationships, expressed grave concerns about the adverse effects of these practices, particularly on women and children.
The APWWS urged the governor to intervene and direct the state government to pass legislation prohibiting polygamy and bigamy in order to “prevent further harm to women and children in Arunachal.”
Also read: Guv asked to ban polygamy, bigamy in Arunachal through legislation
