40-yr-old man convicted of marrying 15-yr-old girl in Karachi

According to Dawn, a guy who married a minor received a two-year term in the care of a probation officer from a sessions court. Section 3 of the Sindh Child Restraint Marriage Act found 43-year-old Muhammad Aslam guilty of marrying a 15-year-old girl, according to Additional District and Sessions Judge (West) Irshad Hussain.

Under the probation officer’s supervision, the convicted felon would reside at his residence with his spouse, the same minor daughter. The judge noted that the defendant was the only provider for his wife and young daughter and that it would be more appropriate to turn him over to the probation officer rather than put him in jail.

“Sending him in jail to serve out the sentence will not benefit him to reform his life and mend his ways,” the judge said.

As Dawn reported, during the trial, the guilty party entered a plea of guilty and offered himself over to the court.

A complaint was filed with the police in May 2022 by the father of a minor, according to the prosecution, who claimed that Aslam had taken his daughter away from their neighborhood intending to rape her or force her into marriage.

Meanwhile, the minor girl and her spouse went to a magistrate to provide a statement in which they stated that the girl had left her father’s house on her own volition and that she wanted to get married to Aslam through a “court marriage.”

The court dismissed the First Information Report (FIR) after recording her statement. After that, the complainant filed an appeal with the Sindh High Court, which in turn mandated a medical examination to determine the age of the girl.

She was 15 years old when she fled her house, according to the medical report. As a result, the court declared Arif Hussain, Aman Gul, and Nikah Khawan Moulvi Karamat to be proclaimed criminals and added provisions of the Child Marriage Restriction Act.

The girl stated that she was 19 years old when the marriage was consummated during the interrogation. She denied that her husband had kidnapped her and insisted that she had given her free will to the marriage. She said that her husband was taking good care of her and their daughter and denied having submitted a Khula application to the court.
Moreover, Dawn stated that she acknowledged not knowing that marriages between minors are legally forbidden.