Police recover girl allegedly held captive by father

Victim allegedly endures torture being tied in chains at her own home

CHAK JHUMRA:

A girl who wanted to marry a boy of her choice was allegedly confined into the home tied in chains to restrict her mobility.

This happened allegedly at the behest of the girl’s father who was not willing to let her daughter marry of her own choice. Instead, he wanted his daughter to marry her cousin, and he and other members of the family did exert pressure on the girl to do so but she refused.

Upon her refusal her family continued her confinement in chains.

Luckily, someone in the neighbourhood learnt about what had been going on in the household and they immediately informed the police about the girl’s confinement.

Upon receiving the tip from the person in the neighborhood, the police raided the house, recovered the girl and registered a case against three accused, including the girl’s father.

In a statement made before the police the girl, a resident of Jhumra Road, said that she wanted to marry of her own freewill, but her father, Allah Dutta, along with her uncles, Dara Khan and Allah Dutta, tied her in chains at her home and put pressure on her to marry her cousin Afzal instead.

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“When I did not agree, my family members kept me chained in the house and tortured me,” she said.

In an incident of a similar nature a few years ago, police arrested four people after a 14-year-old girl was allegedly married off on the order of a ‘panchayat’ in Chichawatni, Sahiwal.

The girl was married against her will to settle a dispute relating to a rape which was believed to have been committed by her brother.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2021.