Lawmakers in the northeastern Indian state of Assam have passed a bill criminalising polygamy, a move the sectarian Hindu government claims will “protect women” but which opposition leaders argues unfairly targets Muslims.
The Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill 2025 makes entering into multiple marriages while a first marriage remains legally valid a punishable offence with a stiff sentence.
Those convicted may face up to seven years in prison, while individuals who conceal an existing marriage and remarry could receive up to ten years in jail and a fine.
The law also places liability on those who facilitate such marriages. Village heads, marriage officiants including judges who conduct Islamic marriages, and guardians who knowingly assist in a polygamous union may face up to two years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 rupees, approximately around £950.
In Islam, polygamy is allowed but regulated. The Quran permits a Muslim man to marry up to four wives only on the condition that he treats them all with complete fairness and justice. If he cannot do that, the Quran instructs him to marry only one.
In Surat An-Nisa, Allah SWT states: “If you fear you might fail to give orphan women their ˹due˺ rights ˹if you were to marry them˺, then marry other women of your choice — two, three, or four. But if you are afraid you will fail to maintain justice, then ˹content yourselves with˺ one or those ˹bondwomen˺ in your possession. This way you are less likely to commit injustice.”
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the bill applies “irrespective of religion” and rejected opposition claims that it targets Muslims.
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He argued that polygamy exists “across all communities” and said the legislation is part of his government’s broader attempt to reform personal laws in the state.
Sarma, a prominent figure in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), also oversees Assam’s home affairs department. The BJP have been widely accused of normalising Islamophobic hate in India and have engaged in Hindu extremist incitement against religious minorities since taking power.
The UCC, a long-standing demand of the BJP, seeks to replace India’s religion-specific personal laws with a single civil code. Supporters argue that a uniform set of laws ensures gender equality, while critics say it threatens religious autonomy and could disproportionately affect minority communities, particularly Muslims.
Opposition parties criticised the legislation on constitutional grounds. Independent MLA Akhil Gogoi said the bill infringes on religious freedoms guaranteed under Article 25 of the Indian Constitution.
The All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), which draws support from Assam’s large Muslim population, said the law violates multiple constitutional protections and warned that it could be misused. Their amendments were rejected by a voice vote.
For many Muslim organisations and legal scholars, the timing and framing of the law raise concerns about the government’s approach to Islamic personal law and its treatment of India’s large Muslim minority.
Assam, which has witnessed repeated political debates over citizenship, demographic change and migration, has become a focal point of the BJP’s push for personal law reform.
Critics say the anti-polygamy bill reflects this wider political climate rather than an urgent legal necessity. The bill will become law once it receives the governor’s assent.
The legislation does not apply to India’s Scheduled Tribes or areas administered under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
These are autonomous tribal regions in the northeast that govern themselves through local councils and longstanding customary laws. The exemption means tribal communities with their own marriage traditions will remain outside the scope of the law.
