IHC allows Muslim man and his convert wife to live together

Petitioner Maria told court she converted to Islam from Hinduism of her own free will

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has allowed a married couple – a Muslim man and his converted wife – to live together and has ordered Islamabad police to provide the pair with protection.

Maria, 21, and her husband Bilawal Ali Bhutto, had earlier approached the high court through their counsel Zulfiqar Ali Korai and sought protection saying they were receiving death threats for exercising their freewill to marry each other.

Maria's family had claimed that she was kidnapped, forcibly converted to Islam from Hinduism and married to a Muslim man. But she informed the IHC in previous hearings that she had embraced Islam of her own volition and not just to marry a Muslim man.

Maria, whose Hindu name was Anooshi, recited the kalma and darood in a previous hearing to prove that she had willfully converted to Islam.



When the court had earlier asked her to meet her parents, she refused. However, on August 18, the court had directed her to do so and on Friday she met with her parents and brother in the office of a court official. The meeting lasted for around 40 minutes.

When Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui took up the case after the meeting, petitioner Maria and her husband Bilawal were present in court as well as her father Anand Lal, mother Kanta Bai, brother Amar Shiva and other relatives along with their counsel Dileep Kumar B Mangalal. In addition, MNA Dr Ramesh Kumar was also at the court to offer assistance to the family.

Kanta Bai told the court at Friday’s hearing that her daughter Maria did not care about her parents or their affection or about the fact that they had fed her and kept her safe for 20 years. She requested that the court grant her family Maria’s custody so that they may persuade her to change her decision to convert and marry.

Kanta Bai also expressed apprehension that Bilawal might leave her daughter and kick her out of his house after some time.

The court then questioned Maria’s father who said he made all efforts he could to persuade her but she was not willing to budge so he made his peace with the matter.



About Maria’s mother’s concern that her husband would leave her,  Bilawal stated on oath that he had contracted marriage with Maria for life and any apprehensions regarding that were misconceived.

Following the arguments, Justice Siddiqui said, “In my view, the custody of petitioner Maria cannot be handed over to parents, with an object that she may be compelled for conversion from Islam to Hinduism.”

He noted that if the parents indeed succeed in converting her back that would further endanger her life.

The court then issued an order stating that Maria made a categorical statement that she embraced Islam with conviction and allowed the couple to live together. It also ordered police protection for them.

As per the court order, Maria had said that she had been struggling in deciding which religion she wanted to adhere to since she was a young girl. She further stated that she had not embraced Islam “merely to marry Bilawal” and this was her conscious choice.

“She is so firm on her stand that recited kalma and darood and requested the court to allow her to live with her husband in accordance with the injunction of Islam,” the court order read.

MNA Kumar said the tendency of converting and marrying Hindu women to Muslim men had taken a root in the country and was destroying its very fabric. He added that the Hindu community did not believe in the archaic practice of karo-kari so Maria’s fear of being killed was baseless.