Outrage erupts after 3-year-old is married to 60-year-old man in Pakistan, link to her sister's murder being probed
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Outrage erupts after 3-year-old is married to 60-year-old man in Pakistan, link to her sister's murder being probed")
The child bride's sister was married to her groom's son and murdered weeks ago. Photograph: (AFP)
A case of child marriage has rocked Pakistan where a father married off his 3-year-old daughter to a 60-year-old man in exchange for 2.5 million Pakistani rupees. His other daughter was married to the groom's son, who had killed her.
Outrage swept Pakistan after news broke that a man sold his 3-year-old daughter to a 60-year-old man. The incident happened in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, where the girl was sold for 2.5 million Pakistani rupees, around $9,000. Her father, Abdul Baqi, was arrested in the border city of Chaman, while 60-year-old Salah Uddin was absconding. The matter has drawn attention to the practice of walwar, or bride price, a traditional Pashto custom where a groom or his family pays money to the bride's family.
Local reports state that the marriage only existed on paper for now since the entire amount had not been paid. Once the full walwar money had been handed to the girl's father, she would have been considered the 60-year-old's wife. But it could have been years before the full bride price was paid. Till then, the arrangement would have meant that the girl's family could not look for another match for her in the future, even after she became an adult. In case they tried to, it could have serious repercussions, including violence between the two families.
After the news became public, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti directed authorities to launch an investigation instead of waiting for a formal complaint from any of the relatives. Israr Ahmed Umrani, assistant inspector general of Balochistan Police for gender issues, told The Media Line that the girl's father had been arrested while they are searching for Salah Uddin. Chaman Police Subdivisional Police Officer Abdul Jabbar Khan told the outlet that the girl and her mother were under police protection.
Girl's sister was married to Salah Uddin's son, who killed her
Meanwhile, the police are also looking into the murder of the girl's older sister, Shukria Bibi, on the outskirts of Quetta. According to police, Baqi arranged Shukria's marriage to Salah Uddin's son for 1.5 million rupees. Later, he set up his 3-year-old to marry Salah Uddin, but he reportedly asked him to send his 8-year-old daughter instead.
A few days later, Shukria was killed by her husband Kamran, who says he got angry after his wife looked outside through a doorway and hit her with an iron rod. The police are investigating whether Shukria's murder could be connected to the latest dispute.
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Baqi is also said to have told a local vlogger the same. He says that Shukria was subjected to violence by her in-laws who demanded that another minor girl be married into their family. Baqi says he agreed because of poverty and since he wanted to buy a home.
Child marriages are illegal in Balochistan, and the Balochistan Child Marriages Restraint Act, 2025, sets the minimum marriage age at 18. A man found guilty under the law can be imprisoned for two to three years and fined 100,000 to 200,000 Pakistani rupees.
