An Indian woman claims that she was forced into marriage at gunpoint by her Pakistani boyfriend when she went to Islamabad last week.
Uzma, a young doctor, had met Tahir Ali of Pakistan's Buner in Malaysia where he worked for two years. The duo fell in love and eventually Uzma went to Pakistan to meet Tahir, but she claims she was forced to marry him.
According to reports, Uzma has recorded her statement in front of a Pakistani magistrate and said that she had come to Pakistan just to visit the country and not to get married.
Uzma also alleged that she was raped after being forcefully married to Tahir at gunpoint. She is currently staying at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad and has said that she will only leave when she is assured a safe passage back to India.
Uzma went to Pakistan on May 1 through Wagah border and was forced to marry Tahir at gunpoint on May 3, according to her statement. Uzma's brother in Delhi had reportedly advised her to seek help from the Indian High Commission.
She convinced Tahir that the two should visit Delhi to meet her parents and that they should apply for visa.
Uzma and Tahir eventually went to Indian embassy on May 5, where the young woman was taken to safety while Tahir was asked to wait. After a few hours, when Tahir enquired about his wife, the Indian officials told him that she was not in the premises and that she did not wish to return to him.
Tahir subsequently followed a missing person report with the Islamabad central secretariat police station. However, when Islamabad Police got in touch with the Indian High Commission, the officials said that Uzma was with them and did not wish to go back to Tahir.
A local court has now issued notice to all the parties involved, asking them to explain their position. Reports state that Uzma was cheated by Tahir, and that he did not tell her that he was a school dropout and that he worked in Malaysia as a labourer.
Uzma, while recording her statement in front of the magistrate, said that they had become friends and that she had come to Pakistan only for the purpose to explore the country and to meet him. However, she claims that Tahir's friends forced her to wed him and snatched her travel documents.
"Tahir was my friend. I applied for Pakistani visa not to get married, but to see the country," Uzma said. She also added that she did not understand the language that Tahir's family spoke. Tahir is from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where Urdu is hardly spoken.
