Forced to marry Pak man at gunpoint: Indian woman

India is coordinating with Pakistan for the safe return of a 20-year-old Indian woman who told an Islamabad court on Monday that she was subjected to violence and sexual abuse after her forced marriage with a Pakistani citizen at gunpoint.

The woman, Uzma, filed a plea with a court in Islamabad against her husband Tahir Ali on Monday, claiming that she was being harassed and intimidated by him.

She also recorded her statement before magistrate Haider Ali Shah. Uzma told the magistrate that she came to Pakistan to see her relatives and not for marriage, a court official said. “I was forced to marry at gunpoint and my immigration documents were also taken away from me,” she said, according to the official.
Uzma, who was brought to the court under strict security, also said that she was subjected to violence and sexual abuse by Tahir.

Uzma further said that she does not want to leave the Indian High Commission premises till she could safely travel back to India. The court adjourned the case till July 11 and issued notices to Tahir to appear for the next hearing. It also summoned cleric Humayun Khan, who solemnised the marriage.

In New Delhi, Uzma’s brother met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and requested the government’s help to rescue his sister at the earliest, ministry Spokesperson Gopal Baglay said.

“The high commission has provided her necessary consular and legal assistance. It is coordinating with Pakistan Foreign Office for the safe return of the lady to India and is also in touch with her family in India on the matter,” Baglay added.

Uzma’s father-in-law, Nazir-ur-Rehman, told the BBC that Uzma contracted court marriage with his son before a local judge in Daggar, the main town of Buner district in Khyber Pakhtunkwa, on May 3.

“The judge had asked her if she was marrying with free will and she said yes,” said Rehman. A page of Nikah (marriage) document of the couple, filled in Urdu and available with the Pakistani media, shows that Uzma D/o Muhammad Noshad is an Indian citizen. She has signed it with full name, starting with Dr (doctor).