SHC orders constitution of medical board to determine Arzoo’s age

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday directed the health secretary to constitute a medical board comprising doctors having specialty in age determination for giving opinion about the actual age of girl Arzoo Fatima, who recently converted to Islam and married against the wishes of her Christian family.

The direction came on a petition of Arzoo who had sought a court injunction against the registration of an FIR against her spouse and in-laws by her family at the Frere police station. Arzoo had submitted in the petition that she had converted to Islam of her own free will and also asked her family members to embrace Islam but they refused.

She submitted that she also contracted marriage with Syed Ali Azhar of her own free will without duress; however, her decision irked her family members who registered a kidnapping case against her spouse and in-laws.

She mentioned in the petition that she had already intimated the Frere SHO about her conversion to Islam as well as her marriage with Azhar after obtaining permission and an affidavit of freewill before the competent authority; however, the SHO, despite the fact that her intimation was duly received by an official of the Frere police station, did not give her acknowledgment.

The family members of the Arzoo, however, questioned the validity of her conversion and subsequent marriage, submitting that Arzoo was not sui juris but 13 years old and produced her birth certificate to prove their case.

Police produced Arzoo before the court who had been shifted to a shelter home. A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha inquired her about her age, to which she stated that she was 18 years old. The SHC, however, observed that there were other documents on record which indicated that her actual age was 13 years.

The high court observed that in order to ascertain the age of the petitioner, it would be appropriate to obtain medical assistance from doctors which had specialty in the determination of age.

The bench directed the health secretary to constitute a special medical board consisting of doctors who had specialty in age determination and the board after examining the petitioner shall submit their expert report on the age of the petitioner.

The SHC observed that in the meantime, the petitioner shall be kept at the shelter home. The high court asked the petitioner to fully cooperate with the medical board which may take her out for the purpose of carrying out the examination of her age, supported by a lady constable, and after the examination, she shall be returned to the shelter home.

The high court ordered that the medical board shall submit its sealed report with regard to the age of the petitioner by November 9. On the previous hearing, the SHC had observed that in this case, the dispute was twofold as the age of Arzoo according to her family was 13 years and to this effect, certificates had been produced before the court. The second dispute, according to the SHC, was whether the girl had converted to Islam of her own free will and that being the case, she had entered into a valid marriage with Azhar.

The SHC observed that naturally it was the first issue which the court had to decide first as no person under the age of 18 could get married according to the law. It is also pertinent to mention that the SHC on October 27 had restrained the Frere police from making any arrest in connection with the FIR against the spouse and in-laws of Arzoo Fatima and directed the Preedy SHO to provide protection to the newly-wed girl.