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Meghla's 2 month old baby sleeps on March 7, 2017 in Khulna division, Bangladesh. 17-year-old Meghla married her 30-year-old husband, Liton, during an arranged marriage in 2015, while she was 15. The marriage was against the Bangladesh law at the time so Meghla's father forged her birth certificate, so she would be old enough for the marriage to be officially registered. Two months ago, Meghla gave birth to a baby girl, the next generation to the line of underage marriages in her family. Meghla's mother had married when she was 16-years-old and her grandmother was married when she was age 14. The age difference is good because I'm young and he can help guide me in life. If a girl is more than 20 and unmarried then she and her family are sexually harassed. When a girl is out with her husband, men won't dare harass her. When a girl turns down a boys dating proposals he will gossip about her and destroy her reputation. No one bothers to investigate if the gossip is true or not. It creates a huge problem for the girl and her family. That's why girls marry early here,Ó Meghla said. Despite having a husband, several boys who used to harass Meghla continued and threatened to kidnap her. Meghla had dreamed of being an engineer but since the accidental pregnancy, she has doubts in even going to university after graduation. Despite Liton's encouragement for Meghla to pursue a university degree, she forgoes her dream to bear the responsibilities as a mother. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)
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