Impact of Polygamy on Indian Women and Children: A Critical Study

Abstract

Engaging in a polygamous or bigamous union is illegal in India. The paper discusses the stance of the Indian Judicial system with the help of various judicial decisions, that polygamy is a diabolical tradition which should be eliminated from our societies, in order to preserve the integrity of women and prevail gender justice. However, no concrete legal structure is codified in order to deal with this issue. Arguing on these points the paper further discusses the legal implications of polygamous unions on women and children. Although there are laws in the Indian society to deal with such a menace, yet there are large numbers of instances of such polygamous unions still prevalent in many parts of India discussed broadly in the paper.The purpose of this article is to identify the rationale behind such a blatantly discriminatory practice like polygamy to still be prevalent in the Indian society. This paper aims to comprehensively analyze gender biased provisions on bigamy and polygamy within the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 respectively, which allow the offenders to exploit and escape the law. Further the prevalence of polygamy cited in the paper sheds light on the effects of such a practice on the status of the wives and Their Children With The Help Of A Plethora Of Judicial Decisions. Finally, The Paper Also Suggests Conclusive Reformative Measures To Deal With The Same.”