Police in Pakistan have declined to recover a 15-year-old Christian girl who was abducted at gunpoint, forcibly converted to Islam and married to the kidnapper, according to her father.
Afzal Javed Masih of Chak No. 648-GB village in Jaranwala, in Punjab Province’s Faisalabad Division, said that his daughter, Sidra Bibi, was taken from their home in the early hours of March 27 by a Muslim, Ali Murtaza, and two accomplices. The men scaled the wall of his house at around 3 a.m. and took Sidra away at gunpoint, he said.
Masih, who collects scrap in Sialkot District to provide a livelihood for his family back in the village, said relatives home at the time informed him of the kidnapping.
“I immediately returned to the village and registered a First Information Report [FIR] the same day, hoping for my daughter’s safe recovery,” he told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News.
Police promptly registered the case but inaccurately recorded Sidra’s age as 17 year old instead of 15 and seven months, as stated on her official birth certificate, Masih said.
“I am illiterate and only learned of this discrepancy later, when a rights activist pointed it out,” he said.
Police initially detained relatives of the suspect but later released them after documents surfaced purporting that Sidra had converted to Islam and married Murtaza of her own free will in Rahim Yar Khan District in South Punjab, Masih said.
He rejected the authenticity of the documents, which included an affidavit allegedly signed by his daughter stating that she was an adult and had embraced Islam after exposure to religious content on social media.
“This claim is absurd,” Masih told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “My daughter has never attended school, and our family does not own a smart phone due to our financial condition.”
He said Murtaza had previously harassed the family.
“Last year, he fired shots at our house after I objected to him loitering outside,” Masih said. “Despite my complaint, police took no meaningful action. Had they acted then, this incident might have been prevented.”
Masih added that the investigation has stalled, leaving the family with little hope of recovering their daughter, the eldest of his children. He noted that his family is the only Christian household in the village, raising concerns about vulnerability due to their minority status.
His household includes his wife, the couple’s five children and his elderly parents.
Legal experts have criticized the handling of the case, pointing to potential violations of child protection laws. Lazar Allah Rakha, a senior Christian lawyer who has represented victims in similar cases, said police were obligated to pursue the case under the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Ordinance 2026, regardless of discrepancies in the FIR.
“Even if the girl’s age is incorrectly stated as 17, the law prohibits marriage under 18,” Rakha told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “Police should also have invoked additional charges, including those related to statutory rape and abduction.”
He also noted irregularities in the purported Nikahnama, or Islamic marriage certificate, including the absence of Sidra’s national identity card number, which is a legal requirement. The Islamic conversion document also does not contain her ID card number, he said.
Police could not be reached for comment.
Rakha welcomed recent legislative efforts to curb child marriages but warned that weak enforcement undermines their effectiveness.
“Courts must require verifiable proof of age, even where a girl claims she consented,” he said. “Too often, courts accept such statements despite official documentation indicating minority.”
Police frequently omit key criminal provisions from FIRs, contributing to a climate of impunity, he said.
Rakha further expressed concern that the proposed law does not declare child marriages void from the outset (ab initio), meaning such unions may remain legally valid even if coercion is later established.
“This legal gap leaves victims vulnerable even after rescue,” he said, urging lawmakers to introduce amendments.
On Monday (April 13), a provincial assembly committee approved the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026, advancing it for further consideration. The bill follows an ordinance promulgated on Feb. 11 by Punjab Gov. Sardar Saleem Haider, which is set to lapse in May if not enacted into law.
The proposed legislation seeks to raise the minimum legal age of marriage to 18 for both males and females, replacing provisions of the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929. It classifies child marriage as a cognizable, non-bailable, and non-compoundable offense, with penalties including up to seven years’ imprisonment and fines of up to 1 million Pakistani rupees ($3,500).
It also introduces penalties for marriage registrars who facilitate underage marriages, criminalizes cohabitation resulting from such unions as child abuse and imposes liability on parents or guardians who enable them. Cases would be tried in sessions courts with a mandated 90-day timeframe for resolution.
Despite these measures, rights advocates say enforcement remains a critical challenge, particularly in cases involving religious minorities.
Christian support group Open Doors ranked Pakistan eighth on its 2026 World Watch List of countries where Christians face the greatest persecution, highlighting ongoing concerns about forced conversions, abductions and legal protections for vulnerable communities.
