What happened
The Punjab Assembly passed the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 on Monday, setting 18 years as the minimum legal age for marriage for both boys and girls and declaring underage marriage a non-bailable offence.
The bill was presented by Punjab Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman. Lawmakers were not initially given copies of the bill, which led to a heated debate. Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari called the situation “unprecedented” and said it was the first time members were sitting in the assembly without receiving copies of a bill under consideration. Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan then directed that copies be distributed immediately.
Bokhari argued that both mental and physical maturity needed to be considered before marriage and called for age verification through documents such as national identity cards or birth certificates. She opposed a suggestion by PML-N lawmaker Zulfiqar Ali Shah that people under 18 be allowed to marry with court permission. Shah urged lawmakers not to prioritise the bill over societal values and raised concerns about restricting early marriages. After extensive debate, the bill was approved by a majority vote.
Why it matters
The previous minimum legal age in Punjab was 18 years for men and 16 years for women under the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929. The change follows the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 promulgated as an ordinance by Punjab Governor Saleem Haider in February. That ordinance was due to lapse in May, 90 days after promulgation, so assembly approval was needed to keep it in effect.
The House also passed an amendment moved by PML-N MPA Ejaz Augustine and co-signed by thirteen members from both treasury and opposition benches, making the best interests of the child a primary consideration in all actions under the law, from investigation and prosecution to bail, sentencing and protective custody. It stated that a child should not be treated as an offender merely for being a party to a child marriage.
Bokhari noted that the Federal Shariat Court had endorsed similar legislation passed by the Sindh Assembly. A separate amendment that would have let a court declare a child marriage void was withdrawn by its movers after Shuja opposed it.
What is still uncertain
It was not immediately clear when the new law would be enforced in practice or how age verification would be carried out at the local level, and the article did not specify a commencement date or implementation mechanism beyond the documents named during the debate.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 2026-04-27.
- Primary source — Dawn: "Punjab Assembly passes bill setting minimum marriage age at 18 for both males and females"27 April 2026 · Report on the bill's passage, the procedural dispute, the debate, the previously applicable ages, and the amendments.
