The father of the Indian woman, Anju — who travelled to Pakistan — has said that she was dead to them after she married her Pakistani friend in the Upper Dir area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a shocking turn of events, Hindustan Times reported.
Reacting to the news of the union of Anju, now Fatima, with Nasrullah, 29, a resident of Kulshoin village in Dir, Gaya Prasad Thomas expressed disappointment saying that his daughter had "ruined" her children's life.
The 35-year-old mother of two from Kailor in India's Uttar Pradesh wedded her Pakistani friend during a visit to the northern district of Upper Dir after embracing Islam.
The reports of the cross-border marriage, the like of Pakistan's Seema Haider to Indian man Sachin, made headlines across the two rival countries and even shocked many.
One of them was Anju's father, who expressed great dismay over Anju's marriage as he talked to the reporters at Bouna village in Gwalior district of Madhya Pradesh.
“The way she ran away leaving her two children and husband behind, she did not even think of her children. If she wanted to do this, she should have divorced her husband first. She is no more (alive) for us,” he said.
It may be noted that according to Anju's statement, she is a divorcee and no longer lives with her husband.
When asked about Anju's conversion to Islam, he denied having any knowledge about it.
“What will happen to her children, her husband? Who will take care of her children (13-year-old girl and five-year-old boy)? We will have to do it,” Thomas said.
He said he will not do "any such thing" when asked if he plans to appeal to the Indian government to bring Anju back.
"I pray...to let her die there [Pakistan]. I don't know how she got the passport, when she got the visa," he added.
Earlier, Thomas had also described his daughter as “mentally disturbed and eccentric”.
On Tuesday, Anju and Nasrullah tied the knot in a local court of a district and sessions judge in KP.
Malakand Division Deputy Inspector General Nasir Mehmood Satti confirmed the couple's nikkah, after which they were shifted to their home from the court under police security.
Police confirmed that Anju arrived in Pakistan via Wagah border on July 22, legally and had a valid visa to stay here for up to a month, but she’ll have to request the Home Ministry in case she wants to extend her visit.
Anju said, in a video statement that surfaced before her marriage, she "feels safe here" in Pakistan.
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