ISLAMABAD – Men can marry underage girls after her first menstrual cycle,Rules Pakistani Court.
Pakistan court has ruled that men can marry underage girls as long as theyhave had their first period.
The ruling was made by the Sindh High Court in Karachi on Monday during ahearing into the alleged abduction, forced conversion and marriage of HumaYounus to Abdul Jabbar.
The Catholic teen was taken from her home on 10 October 2019. Her parentssay that she was born on 22 May 2015 and have provided a baptismalcertificate and school testimony as evidence that she is 14, Aid to theChurch in Need reports.
Read Top Stories
They argue that the marriage is invalid under the Sindh Child MarriageRestraint Act, which forbids marriage below the age of 18.
At the hearing, judges Muhammad Iqbal Kalhoro and Irshad Ali Shah ruledthat under Sharia law, the marriage between Younus and Jabbar standsbecause she has already had her first menstrual cycle.
