Pakistan’s Federal Constitutional Court Hands Over 12-Year-Old Christian Girl to Muslim Husband; Decision Sparks Outcry

Islamabad, February 4, 2026 – The recent decision by Pakistan’s Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) to allow a 12-year-old Christian girl, Maria Shahbaz, to remain with her alleged Muslim husband, Shehryar Ahmad, has drawn widespread condemnation from human rights groups and faith-based organizations. Critics say the ruling disregards the girl’s age, her religious rights, and protections against child marriage.

Maria, abducted on July 29, 2025, forcibly converted to Islam, and married by the 30-year-old Ahmad, was the subject of a prolonged legal battle initiated by her parents. Despite repeated pleas from the family and legal authorities to intervene, the FCC recently allowed Maria to stay with Ahmad, citing the girl’s claim that she had married of her “own free will” and was capable of making decisions about her life.

Legal experts and child protection advocates have strongly criticized the ruling, highlighting that Maria is only 12 years old – far below the internationally recognized age of consent and Pakistan’s own laws regarding child marriage. “The court’s decision sets a dangerous precedent, essentially legalizing child abduction, forced conversion, and underage marriage under the guise of consent,” said Farzana Imran, leader of LEAD Ministries.

Sardar Mushtaq Gill, Founder of LEAD Ministries, expressed deep concern over the implications of the judgment. “It is unacceptable that Christian girls are being forcibly converted to Islam and married off at such a young age. The law must protect children and religious minorities, not facilitate their exploitation,” he said. He questioned whether interpretations of Islamic Sharia were influencing legal decisions that allow child marriages, even involving girls as young as nine, in violation of international human rights norms.

Parents are weeping and crying, with no one to help them get back their minor daughters. The pain can only be understood by the parents themselves, and this tragedy has created a fear of insecurity in the minds of the Christian community as a whole in Pakistan. Pastor Imran Amanat has called on the public to pray for such victims and their families, urging society to support those affected by abductions, forced conversions, and child marriages.

LEAD Ministries, which has years of experience supporting vulnerable Christian families in Pakistan, announced that it will intensify programs to educate and mentor Christian women and girls. The organization plans to focus on faith-based empowerment, legal awareness, and family protection, ensuring that young girls are informed about their rights and equipped to defend their faith and personal safety.

“This case is a stark reminder of the urgent need to protect our children and communities,” Sardar Mushtaq Gill said. “We will continue to stand for our Christian sisters and ensure they have the knowledge, faith, and courage to resist coercion, conversion, or exploitation.”

The decision has sparked debates across Pakistan about the intersection of religious laws, child protection, and human rights. International child rights organizations have also called on the government to review the laws allowing child marriage and forced religious conversion, warning that the current legal framework endangers the most vulnerable members of society.

#ChildProtection #EndChildMarriage #ReligiousFreedom #ChristianRights #PakistanNews #LEADMinistries #FaithAndJustice #ProtectOurGirls #StopForcedConversion #HumanRights

Blasphemy Accusations Endanger Everyone, but Christians Suffer as a Whole Community

Islamabad — Sardar Mushtaq Gill, Founder of LEAD Ministries, has warned that Pakistan’s blasphemy laws continue to destroy lives and create a climate of fear and violence, affecting people of all faiths while disproportionately targeting Christians.

Gill noted that while Muslims, Hindus, and Christians are all vulnerable to blasphemy accusations, Christians remain the only community subjected to systematic collective punishment. “An accusation against a single individual often triggers coordinated attacks on entire Christian neighborhoods,” he said. “Churches have been desecrated and burned, homes torched, and entire communities displaced. Families are traumatized, livelihoods destroyed, and children forced out of school.”

He emphasized that even those acquitted by the courts are not safe. “Prison may end, but fear does not. Victims emerge socially, economically, and psychologically broken, often forced into hiding or to flee their homes,” he said. “Fear has replaced justice, and mobs have taken the place of the state.”

Gill warned that in today’s age of social media and rapid online communication, even ordinary debates or disagreements can be manipulated into blasphemy accusations, putting anyone at risk—often without their knowledge or intent.

He highlighted the serious social and personal consequences of the blasphemy laws, noting that cases can escalate quickly, sometimes resulting in unrest, property damage, or lasting disruption for individuals and communities, including incidents of blackmail and financial extortion.

“The impact is far-reaching,” he said. “Businesses destroyed, factories closed, families torn apart, and entire communities displaced. This is no longer just a legal issue—it is a humanitarian emergency.”

Gill emphasized that the blasphemy laws fail in their intended purpose. “Religions, sacred texts, and revered figures cannot be physically harmed by criticism or insult. Yet countless human lives have been destroyed in their name,” he said. He added that Section 295-A alone is sufficient to protect religious sentiments in cases of deliberate harm, while extreme punishments such as death or life imprisonment are excessive and constitute cruelty and oppression against believers of other faiths, rather than safeguarding Islam. Therefore, Sections 295-B and 295-C should be immediately repealed to prevent further misuse and protect fundamental human rights.

He called on the Government of Pakistan to act without delay to repeal the laws and urged the international community to hold the state accountable for failing to protect fundamental human rights. He also appealed to international authorities, human rights organizations, and concerned individuals to take urgent action to safeguard the lives of people, particularly Christians, in Pakistan. “Silence now is complicity,” he said.

#StopBlasphemyBusiness #EndBlasphemyLaws #Pakistan #HumanRights #ProtectMinorities #ReligiousFreedom #JusticeForChristians #StopReligiousPersecution #LEADMinistries #SardarMushtaqGill

Forced Veiling of Young Girls Is a Global Form of Child Radicalization

By Sardar Mushtaq Gill, Founder, LEAD Ministries — As the founder of LEAD Ministries and an advocate for child rights, I feel compelled to raise urgent alarm about a disturbing global trend: the forced veiling of young girls, which increasingly targets children at an alarmingly early age. This practice represents a form of ideological coercion that can only be described as child radicalization.

At LEAD Ministries, we are observing and documenting cases where children as young as three or four years old—even extending to those aged five, six, seven, and eight—are being compelled to wear the burqa, despite being far too young to understand, choose, or consent to such impositions. This is not religious instruction or moral guidance. It is coercion that prioritizes ideology over a child’s well-being.

This troubling practice is not confined to one region. It is occurring across South Asia, the Middle East, parts of Africa, and within diaspora communities in Europe and North America. By enforcing strict religious dress codes on toddlers and young children, extremist actors normalize control and submission from the earliest stages of life, while undermining the child’s right to personal development, dignity, and freedom of expression.

Sardar Mushtaq Gill, Founder of LEAD Ministries, has personally observed this practice in his own surroundings. He warns that it is happening openly, without any oversight or intervention from local authorities or children’s rights organizations. The lack of accountability allows extremist actors to continue coercing young children into veiling, putting their psychological, emotional, and social well-being at serious risk.

To force little girls to wear the veil or burqa is an act of radicalization of Islam against children. When coercion begins at such a young age, it instills fear, shame, and gender inequality before a child can even form a sense of self. A three- or four-year-old cannot understand modesty, morality, or faith. What is being imposed is not upbringing—it is ideological conditioning.

Human Rights Perspective:

The forced veiling of young girls constitutes a clear violation of international human rights standards, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Children have the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion (Article 14), and to express their views freely in all matters affecting them (Article 12). Coercing toddlers and young children to wear the burqa or veil infringes upon these rights, denying them the ability to make informed choices about their own beliefs and personal development. Furthermore, such practices can cause psychological harm, reinforce gender inequality, and undermine a child’s dignity, placing responsibility on governments and authorities to intervene and protect children from all forms of ideological or cultural coercion (Articles 2, 18, 19, and 29). The lack of oversight or accountability in these situations represents a serious failure to uphold international child protection obligations.

Some defenders claim that veiling is a parental or cultural right. At LEAD Ministries, we strongly reject this justification when applied to children who are too young to exercise choice. Parental authority does not extend to practices that undermine a child’s dignity, autonomy, and fundamental rights. Culture and tradition must never be used to justify coercion.

This is not an attack on Islam or any religion. Faith, to be meaningful, must be embraced freely and consciously. When religion is imposed through fear, force, or societal pressure—especially on children—it becomes a tool of control, not spiritual guidance.

LEAD Ministries warns governments, international organizations, educators, and religious leaders that failing to address this issue will allow the continued exploitation of children in the name of ideology. Child protection laws must explicitly recognize ideological and religious coercion as a serious form of harm.

Children everywhere deserve innocence, dignity, and the freedom to grow without being burdened by extremist interpretations imposed before they can even speak for themselves. Protecting children from radicalization—of any kind—is a global responsibility that cannot be delayed.

#ChildRights #StopChildRadicalization #ForcedVeiling #ProtectGirls #EndIdeologicalCoercion #BurqaOnToddlers #HumanRights #GlobalChildProtection #LEADMinistries #FreedomToChoose #ChildSafety #NoToCoercion