SWAT – Police in Swat have launched an investigation after a nine-year-old girl was married to a 32-year-old man on the orders of a local jirga. The incident took place in the Manglor area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to media reports.
Authorities said the girl was forced into marriage following a jirga decision. The matter came to light after police received information about the case. An inquiry is now underway to determine the facts and take legal action.
According to initial details, the girl’s uncle, Syed Rehman, had allegedly abducted a woman four months earlier. After that incident, the jirga reportedly ordered that the nine-year-old girl be “given” in marriage as part of a settlement. The marriage was then conducted.
Police are investigating all individuals involved in the decision and the wedding ceremony. Officials said action will be taken under the law against those responsible.
The Swat case follows another forced marriage incident reported in Attock. In that case, a 12-year-old girl was allegedly married to a 70-year-old man by her stepfather.
Hazro police registered a case against ten people in the Attock incident. The suspects include the groom and the officiant who conducted the marriage. Police arrested nine individuals, including the groom Naim, his four siblings, and four others. The stepfather, Tayyab, was also taken into custody. However, the marriage officiant in that case is still at large.
Separately, authorities last year registered a case against Asmat Ullah Khan, a local jirga chief, in Rawalpindi. He was linked to the murder of Sidra Arab, who was allegedly killed on jirga orders in Fauji Colony.
The case was filed under the Punjab Arms Ordinance 2015. During the investigation, Asmat Ullah reportedly admitted to carrying a Kalashnikov rifle to Muzaffarabad on July 16. He said he went to retrieve Sidra Arab and entered her second husband’s house with others.
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These incidents have raised concerns about illegal jirga rulings and forced marriages. Police say investigations are ongoing in all cases.
