Rape trial of ‘husband’

A district court in Karachi has ordered prosecuting the “husband” of a minor for rape, besides charging others for facilitating the “illegal marriage”. For many, this would feel like a victory but the fact is that it does not. One, however, does hope that this will prove crucial in putting the brakes on a contentious trend where a rising number of very young girls from the minority communities are marrying men twice their age and more after changing their religion. This is not the first nor the last time such cases have surfaced and can be found across the country.

Child marriage is a longstanding concern in the country. It prompted the Sindh Assembly to enact the law under which the alleged husband and his facilitators have been prosecuted. The counter-argument, however, was that since the child had converted to Islam, Islamic jurisprudence would take precedence under which the condition for marriage and consummation is puberty. This argument has been one of the reasons why many similar cases were scrapped in the past. The august district court, however, deemed that it was not its place to determine which law will take precedence and that the matter can be raised at the appropriate forum.

In Pakistan, religion is finely interwoven in daily life. However, the basic structure of its governance and law comes from a society which worked very hard to separate the concept of religion from the state. This, however, has created an inherent conflict in the country’s judicial structure. Should a judge lean a smidge on one side, the other side is used as a stick to beat him with. In these cases and others, it is not uncommon to find groups using intimidation tactics and allegations of traitor to the religion.

Forced conversions and child marriages are issues that are recognised globally and have had a direct impact on the country. Internally, it is leading to fractures, least of all with legal complications. The Sindh legislature moved to indicate which side of the divide it is on, but a greater, national discourse with a definitive solution is now required.

 

 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 14^th, 2020.

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