New Delhi: Three people were booked for allegedly marrying an 11-year-old non-Muslim girl forcibly and converting her to Islam in Pakistan’s Sheikhupura district, The Express Tribune reported.
According to the report, Salim Masih, a resident of Ferozwala, stated some officials from the local police station showed up at his place on March 27 and asked him to appear in the court along with his daughter the following day.
When he went to the court with his daughter the next day, he came to know that his former neighbour, Imran Sarfaraz, had lodged a complaint against them.
As per the report, Sarfaraz showed his daughter’s birth certificate to the court, which indicated her age as 11 years old. Also, along with the application was a marriage certificate dated October 10, 2023.
Sarfaraz also allegedly forced the family to marry off the girl after her conversion to Islam, Masih said, as reported by The Express Tribune.
Speaking to The Express Tribune, Masih’s daughter said that the suspect, their former neighbour, made her sign the marriage documents and promised her a trip to a water park in return.
Upon reviewing the evidence, the court rejected the plea filed by Sarfaraz and instructed the police to take legal action against him, his mother, and the witnesses to the marriage.
Punjab Minister for Minority Affairs, Ramesh Singh Arora also ordered action in response to the incident.
According to the report, Arora personally reached out to Salim Masih after coming to know about the distressing incident, urging the police to swiftly register a case against the suspect, The Express Tribune reported.
It is to be noted that a group of experts last year expressed alarm at the reported rise in abductions, forced marriages and conversions of minor girls and young women from religious minorities in Pakistan and called for immediate measures to check the practices and ensure justice for the victims.
Reports suggest that these so-called marriages and conversions take place with the involvement of religious authorities and the complicity of security forces and the justice system, according to the UN.