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Published 23 Nov, 2008 12:00am

Minor girls of quake-affected family forcibly married off

SHIKARPUR, Nov 22: Three minor girls of an earthquake-affected family of Abbotabad were fraudulently brought to the katcha area of Shikarpur where two of them were forcibly married off.

This was disclosed after Shikarpur police recovered four girls in a raid in the katcha area of Khanpur on Saturday. The girls were brought deceitfully from Karachi two years ago.

Ms Yasmin, wife of Mohammad Zahoor Abbasi and resident of Orangi Town, Karachi, and mother of Nadia, 11, Reema, 10, and Asma, 6, said that a woman, Sakina Jatoi, had brought her daughters to Chaman village on the pretext of providing them financial assistance and accommodation.

However, Yasmin accompanied her daughters along with a minor son. They first stayed in the house of Sakina’s sister and were later taken to the house of her brother Mehar Jatoi near Drighpur, Khanpur taluka.

The girls and their mother were trapped in the katcha area where Nadia and Reema were forcibly married to Qurban Ali alias Soomar Jatoi and Allah Dino Jatoi, she said.

Ms Yasmin escaped from the house along with her minor son two months ago and straightaway headed to Karachi and lodged an FIR with Orangi Town police.

DPO Shikarpur Khadim Hussain Rind said that a heavy police contingent on Saturday raided the katcha areas as pointed out by Ms Yasmin soon after receiving information from human rights organisations and on the directives of Sindh chief minister through his adviser.

Police recovered three sisters and another girl, Shamim, daughter of Shoukat Ali, resident of Quaidabad, Karachi. She too, was abducted from Karachi and forcibly married to a Jatoi tribesman.

Qurban Ali and Allah Dino were arrested by police during the raid.

Speaking at a press conference, the DPO said that Nadia, Reema and Asma and their mother were victims of earthquake in Abottabad and were residing in Orangi Town in a rented house from where they were fraudulently brought to katcha area in taluka Khanpur.

Accused Qurban Ali and Allah Dino claimed that they had married Nadia and Reema according to their will and with the support of one Khanan, an employee of former MNA Dr Mohammad Ibrahim Jatoi.

The DPO said that Nadia, Reema and Asma would be handed over to their relatives through court and the fourth recovered girl Shamim will be provided shelter on her wish as according to her she had no relative.

However, no FIR was lodged till the filing of this report.

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