Guwahati, Nov. 27: In a significant development, the Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill, 2025, was passed in the Assam Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
The Bill, which was tabled on the opening day of the five-day winter session of the state Assembly, makes polygamous marriages an offence, punishable with up to 10 years of imprisonment.
However, people belonging to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category and areas governed under the Sixth Schedule have been exempted from the purview of the legislation.
Under the Bill, a person convicted would be ineligible for public employment funded or aided by the Assam government. Besides, offenders would cease to be eligible for any state government scheme, and also for contesting any election in Assam.
Addressing the House, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, while calling the polygamy ban a “step towards the Uniform Civil Code (UCC),” reiterated the state government’s commitment to bringing uniformity in personal laws across communities, saying that the Bill could cover people from all religions.
Sarma further asserted that after bringing laws against polygamy and child marriage, the state government would focus on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). He even challenged the Opposition to stop him from bringing UCC.
“I promise that if I return as Assam chief minister for a second term next year, I will bring UCC in the Assembly. Stop me if you can, but if you cannot, I will bring UCC in the very first session of the House,” the chief minister claimed, adding that even the Supreme Court had, time and again, said that the time has come for states to adopt UCC.
