Tajammul Gurmani
Manchester
Former minority member of the Sindh Assembly, Saleem Khurshid Khokhar, has said that the Christian community in Pakistan is deeply concerned over the Federal Shariat Court’s verdict in the Maria Shahbaz case, and demanded the protection of their places of worship, as well as the lives and property of minorities across the country. He was addressing a press conference in Manchester along with Christian leaders Shafiquz Zaman and Saleem Gill.
Saleem Khokhar said that Maria Shahbaz was allegedly abducted two years ago from the Nawab Town Police Station area in Lahore, and an FIR was also registered at the local police station. Later, a Muslim young man, Shehryar, appeared in the local court with a marriage certificate and claimed that Maria had willingly married him. Following the submission of the marriage certificate in court, the FIR was dismissed. “At that time, Maria was only a 12-year-old minor girl, and during the court proceedings, a B-Form and NADRA records were also presented as evidence of her age, but were not accepted. According to state law, the marriage of a girl under the age of 18 is not allowed; however, the Federal Shariat Court upheld this marriage in its verdict,” he claimed.
Former MPA of Sindh Assembly said that the Christian community rejects the court’s decision in the Maria Shahbaz case and demands that the forced marriage be annulled, and that Maria be recovered and returned to her parents. He said that a Christian delegation will soon meet political leaders in the UK to inform them about the situation, he concluded.
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