Women’s association urges halt to polygamy legalization

KATHMANDU: The Nepal Women’s Association has strongly condemned a proposed legal provision that seeks to legitimize polygamy under certain conditions, calling it irresponsible, regressive, and deeply objectionable.

The organization submitted a memorandum to Minister for Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs, Ajay Kumar Chaurasiya, urging the government to immediately withdraw the controversial proposal.

The Association stated that the proposal would reverse decades of progress in women’s rights and risk reviving the harmful practice of polygamy.

According to the draft provision, a man who fathers a child with another woman while still legally married would be allowed to marry the second woman.

The Association argues that this provision effectively legalizes what is currently a criminal offense and undermines the very foundation of gender justice.

In the memorandum, the Association rejected the ministry’s argument that the provision aims to protect the rights of the second woman and her child, calling it misleading and an attack on women’s dignity. “Granting legal recognition to extramarital relationships under the guise of marriage is unjust and legitimizes male irresponsibility,” the statement read.

The Association emphasized that protecting the rights of single women and their children is indeed the state’s responsibility, but that legitimizing polygamy is not the solution.

It warned that reinstating polygamy in any form would be a betrayal of the long and difficult struggle for justice and equality fought by women in Nepal.

“We urge the federal government to immediately withdraw this proposal, which is driven by a misguided and anti-women agenda,” the statement concluded. The Association also called for meaningful and inclusive dialogue with women’s rights activists, civil society, and concerned organizations to ensure justice-based and equitable legal reforms that uphold the principles of equality and dignity for all women and children.