Defying jirga orders: Man refuses to give away niece

Couple eloped and married each other four months ago, sparking an enmity between the Seelro and Khaskheli communities.

SUKKUR:

While the National Assembly passed a bill protecting women against forced marriages, a jirga in Sindh continued to follow tribal justice.

However, a man declared Karo by the jirga has refused to comply with the jirga’s orders to give his minor niece to the aggrieved party in order to resolve a dispute over his marriage.

Zakiullah* Seelro of village Bakhshoo Seelro, who eloped with and later married with Parveen* Khaskheli of village Ghanwar Khaskheli, also refused to pay the fine of Rs400,000 that the jirga has imposed on him.

Zakiullah and Parveen eloped and married each other four months ago, sparking an enmity between the Seelro and Khaskheli communities. Sources from the area said that the Khaskheli community was pressing the Seelro community to resolve the matter through the jirga.

Therefore, on Monday night, the jirga convened in village Bakhshoo Seelro, Zakiullah’s village. The jirga, presided over by a representative each of both villages Ghulam Nabi Seelro and Munawwar Khaskheli, heard both parties and declared Zakiullah as Karo. A fine was imposed and orders passed that five-year-old Naseema*, daughter of a man from Seelro, be ‘bartered off’.

While Zakiullah silently consented to the jirga’s decision at the time, sources said he later disagreed and said that he will neither pay the fine nor give away his niece Naseema. “I will not abide by the decision of the jirga and have demanded police protection,” he told local journalists.

However, Dadlo Police SHO was not available for comments.

*Names have been changed to protect identities

Published in The Express Tribune, November 16^th, 2011.