Hrbilas Sarda- The Promulgator of "The Child Marriage Restraint Act", noted as Sharda Act ---
शारदा एक्ट से विख्यात "बाल विवाह निरोधक कानून" के निर्माता-हरबिलास सारदा
As historian and jurist of a high order, Hrbilas Sarda's name will always be taken by reverence. Sri Sarada was born on June 3, 1867. Being a son of librarian of Government College of Ajmer, from the start he has a keen attachment to study the books and contemplation. As a result, he was inspired in Social Services and writing and he composed of numerous books including Ajmer Historical and Descriptive, Hindu superiority, Maharana Sanga, Hamamir of the Ranthambhor, Shankar aur Swami Dayanand, Birjanand sarswati, Shyamji Krishna Verma etc. Hrbilas Sarda was elected three times to the Central Legislative Assembly of Ajmer in 1924, 1927 and 1930. Writer and freedom fighter Mrs Sarojini Naidu said about him -''All the Indian and especially Indian women will be always grateful to Hrbilas Sarda, because he have made a mark with courage and diligence in the field of progressive social reforms.''
In the words of former
Governor of Rajasthan Late Sardar Gurumukh Nihal Singh '' Sarda performed
several significant tasks in field of the public service, but his most
important contribution is the Child Marriage Restraint Act.''
The Child Marriage
Restraint Act was passed in 1929 is the same credited to Mr. Hrbilas Sarda
(1867-1955 AD). Despite many protests, due to untiring efforts of Shri Sarada,
the Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed by the then British government in
1929. Since there was a strong public opposition, it was very important and
brave act to introduce and advocate Child Marriage Restraint Act's legislation and
to make it to be passed at that time. Hrbilas Sarda presented the Child
Marriage Restraint Act in the Central Assembly on September 15, 1927. Presenting
the law, he told that his main purpose is that to consider the tough life of
women who get widow in childhood because of child marriage, how they spend
their life, their distrress can not be imagine. Lawmaker Manu wrote that a girl
should be married three years after acquiring the adult age. According to the
father of Ayurveda 'Dhanvantari', a girl becomes adult in almost 16 years of
age in India. In any case, this is not appropriate to marry a girl in the age
of childhood. According to the 1921 census, there was 612 'Hindu child widow'
in the country whose age was less than 12 months. 498 widows were aged to 12
months to two years, 1280 were 2 to 3 years of age and 12016 widows were run
under the age of five. The number of widows under the age of 10 were 17,596 and
3,31,793 widows were run under the age of 15.
While presenting the
bill, Hrbilas Sarda said that the natural development of the girl gets hindered
due to child marriage, and he can not give birth to a healthy child. If we have to progress with the western and
other countries and to strengthen the nation & to get the freedom, then we
have to abandon the practice of child marriage. Quoting the speech of the
Mahatma Gandhi of September 7, 1927, Hrbilas Sarda said -''occasionally I
(Gandhi) pray to God that if he want to keep them alive then do not show them
this type of unfortunate events (child marriage)".
Despite of not getting enough
support from the British government and the Indian theologians, Hrbilas Sarda engaged
in his virtuous practice and built an environment in favour of the Child
Marriage Restraint Act.
In September 23, 1929 in the Central Assembly at Simla, Shri Sarada appealed to the members- "In this scientific age when the distance between countries have fallen away, we must abandon the old-era's practice of child marriage to walk abreast with the progressive nations". Finally he succeeded in his endeavor, and the Child Marriage Restraint Act was passed by the Central Legislative Assembly in September, 1929 which was popularly known as the''Sarda-Act''. This law came into force in April, 1930. Mr. Hrbilas Sarda died on January 20, 1955 at Ajmer.
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