Matrimonial dealings: Man sells daughter to ‘human trafficker’

A man allegedly sold his daughter to a 60-year-old man for Rs55,000.

DERA GHAZI KHAN:
A man allegedly sold his daughter to a 60-year-old man for Rs55,000.

According to villagers in Bawata, Nawab Khan sold his daughter Jamila Bibi to Khaitran tribe leader Jamal Khan Jamal. Jamal lives 2 kilometres away from Baluchi village in the Rakni in Barkhan district and has two wives and nine children.

Jamila Bibi ran away from her house on December 22, 2010 and approached the Police Post at Bhawata.

Station house officer (SHO) M Nawaz Baloch took Jamila to the Area Magistrate. “She did come to see me. Her father followed and said that he would not sell her. He said that he would let her marry the man of her choice,” Baloch said, adding “She agreed to return with him.”

A stamped paper was signed stating that Jamila Bibi would not be sold and would be free to marry her fiancé Mir Jan. However, Nawab Khan later recanted and sold Jamila to Jamal Khan.

On December 24, Jamila was sold to the Khaitran tribe leader and her father insisted that no one had the right to interfere with “whatever he chose to do with his daughter”.

According to villagers, Jamila had tried running away from home several times but her father always managed to recover her.  “Jamal Khan is involved with kidnapping and smuggling young college girls. He was caught by the police four years ago but was released after he paid the police,” Almas Bibi, Jamila’s neighbour said.


Jamila’s ex-fiance Mir Jan said, “I constantly fought for Jamila but her father didn’t have any sympathy.

He sold her to an old man who is in the business of selling girls for money. The police refuse to do anything because they are getting a cut of the profit.”

SHO Baloch said that Jamila consented to the marriage and that he could not confirm any ‘rumours’ that she opposed the match as he had not ‘attended the function’.

Bakhtiar Laghari, a civil society member, said “The girl tried hard to save herself but her father sold her in spite of orders from the court. I appealed on her behalf but the father kept saying it was none of our business.”

Karam Khan who lives in the same village as Jamila’s father said, “The girl is married to Khaitran. I don’t know much about the issue but she protested and cried for days until her father just handed her over to Jamal.”

According to Mir Jan, a hearing of the case is scheduled for January 3, 2011.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 26th, 2010.
Load Next Story