In the absence of the parents, the girl’s elder brother was fined Tk5,000 under the Child Marriage Prohibition Act. Also Read - 50 child marriages in a Satkhira school during pandemicIn recent times, child marriage has been rampant amid the Covid-19 pandemic across the country while many weddings were stopped -- thanks to the operations by local officials. Poverty and economic hardship are considered to be the leading causes of child marriage, but female children of many well-off families are also married off before they turn 18. Also Read - School closures for Covid trigger child marriageBangladesh ranked among the 10 countries of the world with the highest levels of child marriage in 2020, according to a Unicef report. A recent survey by Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF) found that at least 13,886 child marriages were held in 21 districts between April and October 2020.

Source: Dhaka Tribune September 10, 2021 14:48 UTC