Courts flooded with divorce, khula cases

Lawyers say social media fuels rise in runaway marriages, separations

RAWALPINDI:

Family courts in Rawalpindi received a record 1,428 divorce and khula petitions in September, the first working month after summer vacations, setting a new benchmark in the district's judicial history.

According to official data, 396 runaway girls contracted court or love marriages during the same period.

Additionally, 266 guardianship cases were filed in Rawalpindi city, cantonment, and tehsil areas. In Gujar Khan, 284 family cases were registered, and in Taxila, 102.

Another 210 petitions were filed by husbands seeking reconciliation with estranged wives.

In total, 1,814 family cases were registered in the district during September.

Seventy-six women sought custody of children from their husbands and in-laws, with courts ordering 51 children to be returned to mothers, while other cases remain pending.

Lawyers noted that khula-based divorce petitions are rising sharply, with social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok, and Messenger being cited as major factors.

Family law experts expressed concern over the increasing trend of runaway marriages and divorces, urging parents to revive traditional family-arranged marriages.

Advocate Subtain Bukhari said that parents should adopt strict monitoring.

He warned that without such measures, cases of runaway marriages followed by divorces will continue to surge.