Karachi: A Sindh leader on Thursday said he was getting life threats because of his campaign against forced conversion of girls of his community and subsequently the forced marriage.
Saleem Khurshid Khokhar who is a member of Sindh province assembly and president of Sindh chapter of All Pakistan Minorities Alliance told the media in a press conference that the police was not registering the his complaint against the threat but only after the interference of the provincial assembly the case was registered.
“The police station was not willing to take my case but after the interference of the assembly they did it undesirably and so far no one was arrested,” Khokhar complained.
There has been a standing complaint by minorities in Pakistan that their young girls were being kidnapped, forcibly converted and married. These girls are compelled to accept their new status, the minorities say.
“This is such a crucial issue that those who raise their voice against this face life threats and even the judiciary refrain to take up the case because of rising intolerance in the society,” Khokhar said.
He referred to a recent murder case in which Malek Atta Mohammad, a provincial parliamentarian was killed in front of him home last month for critcizing the forced marriages. The killers were not arrested so far.
“Likewise I started getting threats while I was pursuing the case of Rinkle Kumari in the Supreme Court in Islamabad,” Khokhar said.
Early this year, the case of 19-year Rinkle Kumari attracted the attention of the national and international media after she was allegedly kidnapped and forced into marriage with Naveed Shah. The Supreme Court however ruled that she was free to go anywhere she desired but she chose to be with her Muslim husband.
