Lahore, Sept 1: A court in Pakistan has allowed a 21-year-old Hindu woman to return to her parents after she was allegedly abducted, pressured to convert to Islam and married to a Muslim man, officials said.
Shirimati Reeta, a resident of Khipro tehsil in Sindh’s Sanghar district, had gone missing from her home on August 24. Her brother Ravi Shankar subsequently filed a complaint, alleging that unidentified persons had taken her away along with valuables and mobile phones.
According to the complaint, Reeta was allegedly taken to Gujranwala in Punjab, where she was pressured to convert to Islam and marry Nazeer Hussain, who was already married.
Punjab Police later recovered Reeta and produced her before a judicial magistrate on Monday. The investigating officer sought her placement in Darul Aman, a government-run shelter, claiming that she was unwilling to return to her family.
Her lawyers, however, opposed the request and told the court that Reeta wanted to return home with her brother, who was present during the proceedings.
The magistrate directed Reeta to record her statement under oath. She told the court that she wished to return to her parents of her own free will.
The court subsequently allowed her to leave with her brother and made him responsible for her safe custody and return to the family home in Sanghar.
Rights groups in Pakistan have for years raised concerns over allegations of abduction, forced conversion and marriage involving minority women and girls, particularly from economically vulnerable communities.
