Indian woman forced to marry at gunpoint in Pakistan returns home safely

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

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj welcomed Uzma back home, calling her "India's daughter". "I am sorry for all that you have gone through," Swaraj tweeted. Uzma, accompanied by Indian mission officials, crossed the Wagah Border near Amritsar Thursday morning.

Uzma, who is in her early 20s, hails from New Delhi. 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 petitioned 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 returned her the immigration papers which she had said was taken away by Ali, who had submitted the documents after being told by the court to do so. She had been staying at the Indian mission in Islamabad after she accused Ali of marrying her at gunpoint.

Amid continued tensions with Pakistan, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj profusely thanked the Pakistani establishment and judiciary for facilitating Indian citizen Uzma Ahmed's return.

She said though there is tension between the two neighbours, the Pakistan foreign office and the home ministry played a key role in her return. Swaraj had words of praise for Uzma's counsel Barrister Shahnawaz and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani of the Islamabad High Court.

She said while the counsel treated Uzma as his child, the judge dealt with the case on humanitarian grounds and not through the prism of India-Pakistan relations as some people wanted him to.

"I heaved a sigh of relief as soon as she crossed the Wagah border," Swaraj told reporters here. Uzma, a Delhi woman, who had said she was forced to marry a man at gunpoint, returned home earlier in the day. The minister also thanked officials of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, especially Deputy High Commissioner JP Singh.

• Uzma
• Pakistan
• forced marriage
• wedding at gunpoint