A bill seeking to curb the amount of money spent on grandiose in marriage ceremonies, including the number of guests and relatives and even the number of dishes being served to the guests, has been introduced by Congress MP Ranjeet Ranjan in the Lok Sabha.
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The bill, presently titled "The Marriages (Compulsory Registration and Prevention of Wasteful Expenditure) Bill, 2016," has been introduced by Ranjan, wife of MP Pappu Yadav, to cutail the "show of wealth."
"We are six sisters and though I respect my mother's efforts to get all us married in such a way that society won't criticise, I feel guilty that one has to spend so much. Just like a school uniform which makes children from all background appear equal this bill also aims to equalise the spending done by the girl's and the boy's family," Ranjan told International Business Times India.
The Bill, which has been approved by the president and the cabinet, will be taken up during the upcoming Lok Sabha session.
According to the Ranjan, this bill will limit the number of guests and relatives and even the number of dishes being served to the guests. The bill also states that if a family spends above Rs 5 lakh on a wedding, they will have to contribute 10 percent of the amount on marriages of girls from poor families.
"That 10 percent will go into a welfare fund which will be established by the government to help the poor and Below Poverty Line families who find it difficult to get their daughters married. If one can spend lakhs on their wedding then they should not mind spending a few thousands for the marriage of the girls who can't afford anything and instead face societal criticism", Ranjan added.
Ranjan feels that unnecessary spending on weddings has become a norm in many cities. In fact just last November, mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy spend a whopping Rs 500 crore on his daughter's wedding.
While talking to IBTimes India, Ranjan also pointed out: "In cities like Punjab, they spend so much on decoration, food and imported fruits as if it is a competition. Most of the time the food items get wasted and this can feed hundreds of other people. Why waste food just for the sake of showing off?"
Talking about yet another unnecessary expenditure, Ranjan said, "Families spend upto Rs 5,000 on cards with gold and silver coins, which is again for show. We all use digital media, so one can just sent out invitations through the digital platforms."
