Maryam denied Rehman’s claims, saying that the girls are actually daughters of her late sister Maraiz, who had been married to Rehman and died in 2006. PHOTO: EXPRESS
DNA tests carried out on the orders of a family court confirmed that eloped Afghan woman Maryam is the mother of four-year-old Saba and three-year-old Husna, who she earlier said were her nieces.
Afghan couple Haiwad, 23, and Maryam, 22, eloped to Pakistan and got married in May, 2012 in Abbottabad. However, another Afghan national Abdul Rehman, 60, claimed Maryam had been his wife since 2006 and was the mother of his two girls, Saba and Husna.
Maryam denied Rehman’s claims, saying that the girls were actually daughters of her late sister Maraiz, who had been married to Rehman and died in 2006.
The Peshawar High Court (PHC) intervened and shifted the case from Abbottabad to Peshawar. After holding three hearings, the PHC on July 31 ordered a Peshawar family court to decide the case within 40 days.
On September 18, Rehman asserted that both the children were his and Maryam’s and asked the court to conduct DNA tests so that his claim could be proven. The eloped couple, however, expressed reservations, saying they would not believe the results.
On September 19, five witnesses to the alleged first marriage between Maryam and Rehman testified in court. The blood samples of the girls, Maryam and Rehman, were collected at Khyber Medical University’s forensic lab and sent to Rawalpindi for DNA testing on October 19.
The results, announced before family court judge Kiran Shaukat on Monday, showed Maryam to be the biological mother of both girls. Maryam, however, said she would challenge the report’s results in the PHC.
Justice Shaukat asked Maryam if she was born along with a twin, to which she answered no. “If you do not have a twin, then the DNA tests prove that Saba and Husna are your daughters,” said the judge.
Abdul Rehman’s counsel filed an application requesting the court to separate Maryam and Haiwad, who have been living in a shelter home, in light of the DNA tests.
A number of Maryam’s family members including her mother Razia, brother Fawad and elders from her native village Makroyan in Afghanistan have recorded statements in favour of Abdul Rehman.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 8th, 2013.
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Jail the convicts and send them back to Afghanistan for local justice, whatever it is. Pakistan can not be a heaven for such peoples.
Without any further discussions on the DNA test, here is the important question regarding the case.
Did the test also show that the 60 year old Abdul Rehman is the father of the two girls?
I do not see this issue discussed in this news report. All the present test confirm is that the two girls are likely her daughters. Nothing more.
Now, what type of DNA tests were compared between Mariyam, her daughters and Rehman; Chromosomal, mitochondrial or both on all the samples?
From the news report it appears that the DNA tests confirmed the maternal identity (origin) of the little girls and the judge's question whether Mariyam has a twin sister also indicates that only maternal origin of the girls (daughters) were confirmed and not their paternal origin.
The test is thus likely mitochondria DNA test, and it cannot distinguish who is the mother without comparing Mariyam's sister's chromosomal DNA, with Mariyam and girls Chromosomal DNA.
Why was Paternal origin not discussed since Rehman also gave a blood sample.
The most strongest evidence that the girls are as a result of union of Mariyam and Rehman is in the paternal test. I am sure it was done in Rehman's sample, but why it was excluded in the court discussion? If the test showed that Rehman is not the father of these girls, then it actually asserts Mariyam's claim that they are her nieces, indirectly at least.
If the DNA tests confirmed only maternal origin then it is no proof that the girls are not Mariyam's nieces, or that they are definitely her daughters because of the way the test is designed.
Why Mariyam's sister's DNA was not included in the pool, to assert or discredit Mariyam's claim
It is a bad DNA test design, and should be rejected by the court based on any one of the above questions.
As it is reported, the DNA test offers no proof to contradict Mariyam's claim.
I'll skip the social injustice arguments of the case. You go Girl!