KARACHI: In a major development, the Sindh High Court on Thursday ordered to shift Dua Zahra — the teenager who had mysteriously disappeared from Karachi in April but was later discovered to have run away from home to marry 21-year-old Zaheer Ahmed — back to the port city.
A two-member SHC bench announced its verdict today on a petition filed by the girl’s father Syed Mehdi Ali Kazmi pertaining to the alleged kidnapping and child marriage of his daughter, Dua.
Earlier, at the outset of today’s hearing, the police produced Zaheer Ahmed, Dua’s husband, in court.
The SHC had summoned Zaheer to court through a notice.
During the course of the proceedings, Justice Kalhoro remarked that Dua must be brought to Karachi and the case will be heard in the city as she went missing from there.
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“There are shelter homes in Karachi where security arrangements will be made. There will be no threat to the girl in Karachi,” the judge remarked.
He asked Zaheer’s lawyer if he wants Dua to not get shifted to Karachi. At this, the lawyer said that the girl cannot be shifted to Karachi or forced to meet anyone if she doesn’t want to.
“Even the court cannot tell the girl to meet anyone,” he said.
At this, the court remarked that Dua has been declared a minor and, therefore, her statement has no legal value. It, however, observed that no order to give the girl into her parents’ custody is being issued.
Meanwhile, the lawyers representing Sindh and the federal governments also favoured shifting Dua to Karachi.
