Bangladesh, No need to show virginity before marriage

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The High Court of Bangladesh has ordered that the word ‘Kumari’ in the options given on marriage registration should be replaced with the word ‘unmarried’. But there is no change in the words ‘divorced’ and ‘widow’.

Women’s rights groups have called the use of the word virgin derogatory. These groups have welcomed this decision on Sunday.

Apart from this, the court said that the men who came to get married will also have to give information about their getting married or not.

Many girls in Bangladesh are forced to marry at a young age.

What rule did the court make?

The court said that the Bengali word ‘Kumari’ used for girls should now be removed from the marriage registration form.

The term used to refer to girls being single, but it also means ‘virgin’.

In 2014, the lawyers of the groups who filed the case argued that the term is insulting the privacy of women in the name of marriage.

The court said, henceforth, instead of ‘Kumari’, the Bengali word ‘Obibahita’ should be used which means ‘unmarried’.

In a separate decision, the court said that the men who have married now also have to give information about their unmarried, divorced and widower in the marriage registration form.

It will be implemented after the court’s decision is fully published.

Decisions on decisions

Ayun Nahar Siddiqua, the lawyer involved in the case, said, “This is a historic decision. Hopefully, this decision will help advance the rights of Bangladesh’s women.”

Meanwhile, a local marriage registrar has said that he and his colleagues are now officially waiting to be informed about the change in form.

Registrar Mohammad Ali Akbar Sarkar says, “I have done many weddings in Dhaka. People often used to ask me that women need to express their position, why not men? I used to say that it is not in my hands.” I think now I will not be asked this question. “