Teen marriages increase divorce in Karnali

By Rajani Yogi, Surkhet, June 10: Ramila BK, 17, of Birendranagar Municipality-3, Surkhet, married 22-year-old Samir Sunar. A year later, they had a daughter. 

However, disputes began between the couple after the child was born. Following continuous arguments and tension, Ramila left home at the age of 20. Samir later remarried, while Ramila went abroad for work. As the couple had married while underage, their marriage had not been legally registered, making formal divorce impossible.

The story of Basana Khatri from Dailekh is similar. She married 19-year-old Karan Thapa at the age of 16. Karan later moved to Kathmandu for studies while Basana stayed at home. According to Basana, Karan contacted her only twice by phone after the marriage, and the two had almost no communication thereafter.

Although Karan sought a quick separation after around a year and a half, Basana initially refused and continued living at his family home. However, after facing neglect from the family, she eventually decided to separate from him. Their relationship ended before either had reached the age of 20. These are only representative examples. In Karnali Province, many child marriages end in separation at an early stage.

Pabitra Shahi, executive director of Aawaj, an organisation working to prevent child marriage, said adolescents are often drawn into early marriages due to emotional attraction, but many also end up in hurried separations as they struggle to cope with marital responsibilities. 

She further added that lack of family supervision, misuse of social media and imitation of others are further encouraging child marriage in the region.

“Teenagers often rush into marriage soon after developing romantic attraction but struggle to cope with marital responsibilities and challenges later, making the problem increasingly serious in Karnali,” she said.

Health experts warn that pregnancy before the age of 20 puts both mothers and infants at greater health risks. Early marriage is also considered one of the major factors contributing to maternal mortality in Nepal.

To make the government slogan “Marriage after 20” meaningful, campaigns have been launched at municipal, district and provincial levels to declare areas free from child marriage, alongside legal penalties.

However, child marriage continues due to traditional beliefs, poverty, the dowry system and the growing influence of social media. Many marriages that take place during adolescence end in divorce before couples reach their late twenties. 

According to government statistics, 9.8 per cent of boys and 22.7 per cent of girls marry before the age of 20. Data from the Surkhet District Court show that 767 divorce cases were registered in the fiscal year 2023/24, 884 in 2024/25 and 759 cases up to June 5 of the current fiscal year 2025/26.

According to Ujjwal Dev Rawal, information officer at the Surkhet District Court, a significant number of these cases are related to child marriage. Considering this fact, the Karnali provincial government has prepared a strategic plan to curb child marriage in the province. 

Social Development Minister Ghanshyam Bhandari said a separate legal framework had been introduced after child marriage continued despite legal restrictions.

The province has prepared the Karnali Province Strategy for Ending Child Marriage-2082, and the government plans to implement it through programmes in the coming fiscal year, he added.