On raising marriage age of women, PM's swipe at rivals

Taking a swipe at his rivals, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said women are happy with the government's decision to raise the marriage age to 21 but this has caused pain to some.

Addressing a rally in Prayagraj, he also said that 25 lakh of the 30 lakh houses given under Prime Minister Awas Yojana are registered in the name of women in Uttar Pradesh.

This shows the government's commitment to "sacha (true) empowerment of women", Modi said.

"We are trying to increase the age of marriage of women to 21 years so that they can have time to study and progress. The country is taking this decision for its daughters. Everyone is seeing who is having problems with this...it has caused pain to some," he said.

Some Samajwadi Party MPs made adverse comments on the issue recently.

In an apparent dig at the SP's rule in the state, the prime minister said, "Five years ago the mafia ruled the roost on the roads of Uttar Pradesh. The worst sufferer were our sisters and daughters".

"It was difficult for them to move out on roads and go to schools and colleges. But Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has put these hooligans in their right place," he said.

The SP, which was in power from 2012 to 2017, was succeeded by the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh.

Hailing the Adityanath government, the prime minister said, "In Uttar Pradesh now there is security, rights and opportunities (for women). I am confident that with the blessings of our mothers and sisters, no one will push the state back to darkness again. Come let's take an oath from this pious land of Prayagraj that Uttar Pradesh will progress."

Modi was speaking after participating in a programme where he transferred Rs 1,000 crore to the bank accounts of self help groups to benefit around 16 lakh women.