Faisalabad [Pakistan], August 31 (ANI): Human rights activists and minority rights advocates have raised serious concerns over the handling of the case of a 13-year-old Christian girl from Faisalabad who was allegedly abducted, forcibly converted and compelled into marriage, as reported by The Express Tribune.
According to The Express Tribune, speaking at a press conference at the Faisalabad Press Club, activists criticised the decision to hand her custody to the man accused of abducting her. They warned that placing the minor in the custody of the alleged perpetrator could leave her vulnerable to further intimidation, abuse, exploitation and coercion.
The press conference was attended by Advocate Akmal Bhatti, chairman of the Minorities Alliance Pakistan, Joseph Janssen, Advocate Haroon Michael, Sadaf Adnan and the girl's mother, Nadia Nadeem. The speakers called on the government, police and judiciary to take immediate steps to safeguard her and ensure that she is recovered from the alleged perpetrator. They demanded that the child be placed either with her parents or in appropriate protective custody until the legal proceedings are concluded. The case dates back to June 12, 2026, when Mohsin Liaquat allegedly abducted her. Police subsequently registered an FIR at Raza Abad Police Station.
Police later arrested the accused, recovered her and placed her under protective custody. She appeared before a judicial magistrate on June 27 and allegedly stated that members of the accused's family had coached and pressured her to present herself as an adult, as cited by The Express Tribune.
The activists also questioned documents produced by the accused's family, which reportedly showed her date of birth as June 2008 and included records relating to her alleged conversion and marriage. They argued that this information conflicted with evidence suggesting that her parents were married in 2012, when she could not have been born in 2008, as reported by The Express Tribune. (ANI)
Pakistan: Minor Christian girl's custody handed to abductor, raises questions over minority rights
