A Pakistani federal court has given custody of a teenage Christian girl to a Muslim man who forcibly converted, raped, and married her.
On Tuesday, a two-judge bench of the Federal Constitutional Court rejected the 13-year-old Maria Shahbaz’s official birth record and ignored earlier judicial findings that the marriage was illegal. The justices accepted a statement made by Shahbaz, which her parents claim was made under coercion, that she converted to Islam and consented to the marriage of 30-year-old Shehryar Ahmad.
“We were hopeful that the court would consider the girl’s official birth document (B-Form) and the sessions court order confirming that the accused had contracted an illegal marriage with a minor,” Safdar Chaudhry, chairperson of rights group Raah-e-Nijaat Ministry, told Christian Daily International–Morning Star News. “Even the investigating officer informed the court that no marriage record existed at the relevant union council, yet this was ignored.”
He went on to accuse the court of failing to consider that the girl had been in custody of Ahmad for over six months, saying, “The judges should have taken into account that she was likely to give a statement in the accused’s favor under duress.”
The girl was taken back in July, and her family had sought judicial intervention to save her. Shahbaz’s father said that Ahmad, his neighbor, abducted her when she went outside to go to a nearby store.
An initial report of the incident found that the marriage certificate between the two was fake, which prompted the family to request a reinvestigation from the Lahore police senior superintendent.
“After a month-long inquiry, a deputy superintendent restored the FIR and added additional charges,” Chaudhry explained. “Yet the police made no attempt to arrest the accused, who did not even seek pre-arrest bail and continued appearing in court without fear. This brazen conduct points to police collusion with the abductor.”
Chaudhry also highlighted that one judge rejected the birth certificate and questioned the teenage girl's age, saying that the judge commented she “did not appear to be 13 years old and looked much older.”
“If superior courts refuse to recognize official birth documents, there is little hope for protecting minor girls,” Chaudhry said.
On Tuesday, a two-judge bench of the Federal Constitutional Court rejected the 13-year-old Maria Shahbaz’s official birth record and ignored earlier judicial findings that the marriage was illegal. The justices accepted a statement made by Shahbaz, which her parents claim was made under coercion, that she converted to Islam and consented to the marriage of 30-year-old Shehryar Ahmad.
“We were hopeful that the court would consider the girl’s official birth document (B-Form) and the sessions court order confirming that the accused had contracted an illegal marriage with a minor,” Safdar Chaudhry, chairperson of rights group Raah-e-Nijaat Ministry, told Christian Daily International–Morning Star News. “Even the investigating officer informed the court that no marriage record existed at the relevant union council, yet this was ignored.”
He went on to accuse the court of failing to consider that the girl had been in custody of Ahmad for over six months, saying, “The judges should have taken into account that she was likely to give a statement in the accused’s favor under duress.”
The girl was taken back in July, and her family had sought judicial intervention to save her. Shahbaz’s father said that Ahmad, his neighbor, abducted her when she went outside to go to a nearby store.
An initial report of the incident found that the marriage certificate between the two was fake, which prompted the family to request a reinvestigation from the Lahore police senior superintendent.
“After a month-long inquiry, a deputy superintendent restored the FIR and added additional charges,” Chaudhry explained. “Yet the police made no attempt to arrest the accused, who did not even seek pre-arrest bail and continued appearing in court without fear. This brazen conduct points to police collusion with the abductor.”
Chaudhry also highlighted that one judge rejected the birth certificate and questioned the teenage girl's age, saying that the judge commented she “did not appear to be 13 years old and looked much older.”
“If superior courts refuse to recognize official birth documents, there is little hope for protecting minor girls,” Chaudhry said.
