Activists have called on the authorities to investigate who violated the law to officiate 14-year-old Dua Zehra’s marriage, with many condemning the sensational reporting of the case following news of her alleged ‘nikah’.
14-year-old Dua Zehra, who was reportedly abducted from Karachi last week, was tracked down in Lahore where the authorities also found that she had been married to a man in the city.
Journalist Asad Toor shared a photograph of Dua Zehra’s nikahnama, according to which her age had been recorded as 18 instead of 14, claiming that this was a clear case of forgery and manipulation that authorities should not ignore.
https://twitter.com/AsadAToor/status/1518555102994472960
A lawyer added to the earlier tweet and suggested that if the nikahnama was just being used as a cover up for kidnapping and rape, then the perpetrators should not be let free.
https://twitter.com/haseebajaved/status/1518560137350246400?s=20&t=jUy0Li7TczCoBacEeLW6lg
Actress Mansha Pasha also voiced her opinions on the matter and highlighted how a minor cannot consent to marriage, in which case the matter becomes a case of abduction.
https://twitter.com/manshapasha/status/1518581301154045953?s=20&t=jUy0Li7TczCoBacEeLW6lg
https://twitter.com/Azrantings/status/1518534368540594176
https://twitter.com/whatsupmuzamil/status/1518576082315878400
If the girl is below 18 years of age, a nikahnama is considered invalid in the eyes of the law, according to legal experts, including politician Jibran Nasir.
https://twitter.com/MJibranNasir/status/1518534990430101504
While the nikahnama and the missing girl’s location has been traced in Lahore, authorities have so far been unable to locate the girl. In Punjab and Sindh, the legal age for marriage is 18 years.
14-year-old Dua Zehra, who was reportedly abducted from Karachi last week, was tracked down in Lahore where the authorities also found that she had been married to a man in the city.
Journalist Asad Toor shared a photograph of Dua Zehra’s nikahnama, according to which her age had been recorded as 18 instead of 14, claiming that this was a clear case of forgery and manipulation that authorities should not ignore.
https://twitter.com/AsadAToor/status/1518555102994472960
A lawyer added to the earlier tweet and suggested that if the nikahnama was just being used as a cover up for kidnapping and rape, then the perpetrators should not be let free.
https://twitter.com/haseebajaved/status/1518560137350246400?s=20&t=jUy0Li7TczCoBacEeLW6lg
Actress Mansha Pasha also voiced her opinions on the matter and highlighted how a minor cannot consent to marriage, in which case the matter becomes a case of abduction.
https://twitter.com/manshapasha/status/1518581301154045953?s=20&t=jUy0Li7TczCoBacEeLW6lg
https://twitter.com/Azrantings/status/1518534368540594176
https://twitter.com/whatsupmuzamil/status/1518576082315878400
If the girl is below 18 years of age, a nikahnama is considered invalid in the eyes of the law, according to legal experts, including politician Jibran Nasir.
https://twitter.com/MJibranNasir/status/1518534990430101504
While the nikahnama and the missing girl’s location has been traced in Lahore, authorities have so far been unable to locate the girl. In Punjab and Sindh, the legal age for marriage is 18 years.