‘Online marriage registration to curb child marriage, polygamy’

Law Minister Md Asaduzzaman said on Saturday that the government planned to digitalise the marriage and divorce registration system, which he said would help detect child marriages, previous marriages and unauthorised polygamy.

“The marital records will be preserved in a central digital database, and it will enable women and men to know about a prospective spouse’s previous marriages, ultimately curbing the practice of polygamy,” he said.

The minister made the comments as the chief guest at the opening of a 10-day residential training programme on the use of software for online marriage and divorce registration at the BRAC Learning Centre in Dhaka.

He said the system would allow the authorities to verify the marital status of anyone, either from home or abroad, when necessary.

In the case of authorised polygamy, the minister said, online registration would enable authorities to check whether the prospective groom had obtained the required permission from the arbitration council.

Asaduzzaman said a key objective of the system was to create a reliable and integrated database of marital relationships.

Additionally, he said, the database would help authorities monitor the number of marriages taking place each year, detect child marriages and assess whether marriage-related laws were being properly enforced.

It would reduce the scope for concealing previous marriages or denying a marriage later, the minister said. 

The central database would further help determine the legitimate heirs of a deceased person, helping to resolve marital and inheritance disputes.

Authorities would also find it easier to verify marital status when required for international travel or other official purposes, he said. The government plans to gradually integrate marriage records with the national identity, birth registration and passport databases.

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Twenty-seven Nikah registrars from five districts are taking part in the 10-day training, which is part of a pilot project titled Civil Registration and Vital Statistics: ICT Infrastructure Development for Marriage and Divorce Registration. They are being trained in the use of the online registration software, managing registration procedures and preserving digital records.

The minister said the trained registrars would later help train other registrars in their respective areas, gradually covering all Nikah registrars across the country. He said the government is set to introduce a lottery system for posting sub-registrars in Dhaka district as part of efforts to increase transparency and accountability in public services.

A law will be formulated to give priority to the successors of appointed registrars in entering the profession, Asaduzzaman said. Law and Justice Division Secretary Liaquat Ali Molla chaired the programme.