The book traces the history of the custom of child marriage in India, particularly in Bengal, from the earliest times till the passing of the Sharda Act or the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 which restricted, although largely unsuccessfully, the continuance of such marriages in the country. The medical argument for and against child marriage have been critically assessed in the study together with the social milieu in Bengal in the 19th and early 20th Centuries conducive to the continuance of the odious practice.
The endeavours of the Parsee social reformer, Behramji Malabari, to influence both British and Indian public opinion against the custom have been vividly focused in the book together with his crusade to force the colonial government in India to implement social legislation banning child marriage.
The genesis of the Age of Consent Act of 1891 has been covered along with the opinion of its protagonists and detractors, while the causes of the failure of the Act have been highlighted to bring out the inherent shortcomings of the reformists' programme.
The reasons for the marginal success of the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 have also been examined in detail with their implications on the continuance of the custom in many Indian states even today.