Mardan: Authorities in Mardan's Katlang tehsil thwarted the marriage of a minor girl, arrested her father and other individuals involved, and registered a case under the Child Protection Act. Acting on a tip-off, officials discovered that a 12- to 13-year-old girl, Muskan, was being married off to a resident of Taxila in exchange for PKR 400,000.
Assistant Commissioner (AC) of Katlang, Sahar Anwar, led the operation alongside the Child Protection Unit and Katlang police. The team raided the house in Landay Shah, rescued the girl, and detained all individuals present at the wedding, including her father.
According to AC Sahar Anwar, the rescued girl was presented before a judicial magistrate, who ordered a medical examination to verify her age. The court also directed that the girl be sent to Dar-ul-Aman (women’s shelter) in Mardan for her safety.
A resident from Landay Shah, speaking anonymously, revealed that the girl’s family, barbers by profession, had been facing severe financial hardship for decades. The father allegedly agreed to sell his daughter into marriage for money to alleviate their poverty.
Imran Takkar, a child rights activist, highlighted the longstanding tradition of underage girls being married off for money in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, often to buyers from Punjab. He stressed that child marriages not only deprive children of their basic right to education but also expose them to severe health risks, including maternal and infant mortality.
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“Child marriage is a major social issue in Pakistan, with an overall prevalence rate of 21%,” said Takkar. “In KP, 5.7% of girls under 15 and 27% under 18 are married, while in the merged districts, these rates increase to 7.5% and 35%, respectively. Poverty, lack of education, and socio-economic challenges are the primary causes.”
Takkar explained that Pakistan still operates under the 1929 Child Marriage Restraint Act, which sets the legal marriage age at 16 for girls and 18 for boys, with penalties limited to a PKR 1,000 fine and one month of imprisonment. While Sindh and Punjab have introduced stricter laws, no updated legislation has been enacted in KP, Balochistan, or Islamabad.
In 2014, KP drafted a bill under the Child Protection and Welfare Commission, proposing to raise the minimum marriage age to 18 and impose harsher penalties. However, the bill has yet to be approved by the provincial assembly.
Activists argue that addressing child marriage requires tackling its root causes: poverty, lack of awareness, and weak enforcement of laws. Until comprehensive legislation is passed in KP and other regions, underage marriages will remain a troubling reality for vulnerable communities.
