Indian woman forced to marry at gunpoint in Pak returns home

An Indian woman, who was allegedly forced to marry a Pakistani man at gun point, returned home on Thursday after the Islamabad High Court allowed her plea and ordered police to escort her to the Wagah Border.

Union Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj welcomed Uzma in a tweet, calling her “India's daughter.”

Sushma Swaraj held a press conference to brief about Uzma’s tumultous story.

Uzma, who is in her twenties, hails from New Delhi. She reached the Wagah Border, accompanied by Indian mission officials, near Amritsar this morning. She had travelled to Pakistan earlier this month. She has accused Tahir Ali, whom she reportedly met in Malaysia and fell in love with, of forcing her into marrying him in Pakistan on May 3.

Uzma filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court on May 12 requesting it to allow her to return home urgently as her daughter from her first marriage in India suffered from thalassemia—a blood disorder characterised by abnormal haemoglobin production.

The court also ordered Ali to give her immigration papers which were allegedly taken away by him earlier. Uzma had been staying in the Indian mission in Islamabad after the horrific incident.

Uzma's brother Wasim Ahmed said it was not clear what had happened to Uzma during her Pakistan visit. “We don't know what exactly happened with her there. We will get to know the truth from her when she is back here. So far we have only been hearing from the media,” he said.

According to the law in Pakistan, her lawyer can continue to represent her and she can come back to pursue the case.

With inputs from NH Web Desk