Medical report of Ghotki sisters determines their adulthood
For further confirmation, their dental and clinical examination will be conducted.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Medical report of two sisters Aasia and Nadia – who had reverted to Islam from Hinduism in Khanpur after leaving their native town of Ghotki – on Tuesday determined them adults of 19 and 18 years of age, respectively when it was presented in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Dr Sania from the department of Radiology of the PIMS hospital had compiled the report. For further confirmation, their dental and clinical examination will be conducted.
The report has refuted speculations in part of the media that the girls were underage – implying that their marriages were unlawful with their spouses namely Safdar Ali and Barkat Ali.
Earlier, the court had ordered the state to take over custody of the girls, and they were subsequently handed over to the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Islamabad Hamza Shafqaat after they pleaded with the IHC for protection.
"Even if the girls are placed in a shelter home, the federal government must ensure their protection," the judge asserted. "A district and sessions judge will be appointed a guardian in this case."
The IHC chief justice had ordered that an SP-rank police officer who is female should be appointed on duty with the sisters to ensure their safety.
Both girls were transported to a shelter home from the IHC as the hearing wrapped up.
Moreover, their alleged spouses, Barkat and Shafqat, had submitted a request for protective bail to the court through their lawyer Umair Baloch. The plea stated that both had been named in the FIR and their arrests should be stopped.
Earlier, they had filed a petition while rejecting speculations on the media that they were abducted and forced to convert to Islam. Their lawyer had maintained that both sisters are being harassed and facing life threats.
The sisters, hailing from Ghotki, stated that they were impressed by the teachings of Islam for a long time, and they “did not accept Islam under pressure or life threats.”
Videos of the reverted sisters’ “Nikah” went viral on the social media, in which a cleric was purportedly shown soleminising the Nikah (marriage) of the two girls, triggering a nationwide outrage.
They were shown embracing Islam in the video.
