Pakistan Court Orders 14-Year-Old Christian Girl, Abducted And Converted To Islam, To Be Returned To Her Abductor

In a shocking incident, the Lahore High Court has ruled that the underage Christian girl who was abducted, forcibly converted to Islam should be returned to her abductor.

As per the reports, a 14-year-old Christian girl, Maria Shahbaz, was abducted in Faisalabad in Pakistan in April 2020 by Muhammad Naqash and his accomplice at gun point while she was travelling to her workplace. She was then forcibly married to Shahbaz, who is an influential man in the region.

The Lahore High Court, however, ruled that Maria Shahbaz had willingly converted to Islam and married her kidnapper. In doing so, it overturned the verdict of a Sessions Court in Faisalabad which had directed that the victim be rehabilitated in a woman’s shelter home.

The verdict asked her to stay in his abductor's custody and be a “good wife”.

According to WION news report, “an eyewitness's account says that the girl was in tears when this ruling was announced, afraid to speak her mind, fearing for her family's safety.” The Lahore High Court refused to accept documents that revealed that Maria was a minor at the time of her abduction and marriage.

However, the incident is one of the thousands of such incidents happening across Pakistan every year. Multiple human rights organisation have pointed towards the dismal condition of minorities women in Pakistan, many of whom are abducted and forcibly converted to Islam.