Kelantan recorded the most number of underage marriage applications made through the syariah court, with 140 submissions received from Jan 1, 2016 to Dec 31, 2018.
This is according to data provided to Parliament on Muslim marriage applications under the age of 18.
Coming in second was Sabah with 112 applications, followed by Sarawak (104).
The statistic, provided by de facto Islamic affairs Mujahid Yusof Rawa in a written reply yesterday, did not state how many of these applications were approved.
Malacca and Penang recorded the lowest number of applications, tied at 15 each.
Mujahid provided the data in response to a query from Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto, who wanted to know how many under-18 marriages were approved by syariah courts as well as Sabah and Sarawak native courts.
Kasthuri had also asked about the government's progress in raising the legal marriage age to 18.
To this, Mujahid said that the legal amendments are still at the consultation phase.
Currently, the legal age for marriage is 16. For Muslims, exemptions can be granted by a syariah court judge. Non-Muslims can seek for permission to wed underage from the National Registration Department and menteri besar or chief minister of their respective states.
Putrajaya is currently pushing to raise the legal age for marriage to 18.
However, Women, Family, and Community Development Deputy Minister Hannah Yeoh had said the issue is a complex one, with many considerations to make for both Muslims and non-Muslims. - Mkini
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