LAHORE, Pakistan — Christian leaders and attorneys this week welcomed a Lahore High Court (LHC) ruling that says living in a marital relationship with a girl under 18 can constitute child abuse even if the minor consents. They described the decision as a significant development in efforts to protect minority girls from child marriage and forced religious conversions.
In an 11-page judgment issued on Monday in the case of a Muslim minor, Hina Aslam, LHC Justice Munawar Iqbal Duggal ruled that a marriage involving a person younger than 18 falls within the definition of child marriage under the recently enacted Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Act 2026. The court said the new law had changed the legal position on child marriage and must be applied accordingly.
The ruling placed the protection and welfare of the minor at the center of the proceedings, declining to grant immediate custody to either side. Duggal ordered that Hina be placed in the safe custody of the Child Protection and Welfare Bureau and directed police to investigate allegations of underage marriage and the issuance of a fraudulent marriage certificate.
The court held that a minor’s consent does not confer a legal right to live with an adult in a marital relationship. “A marital relationship with a minor resulting from child marriage can constitute child abuse and may carry a prison sentence of five to seven years,” the judgment stated. It added that the offense of child abuse could also attract a fine of at least 1 million Pakistani rupees (about $3,605).
The court ordered that Hina could not leave with the man claiming to be her husband. Meetings with her parents or the alleged husband were permitted only under supervision, the ruling stated. The issue of permanent custody will be decided by the Lahore Guardian Court,