Social, Cultural and Religious Factors of Forced Marriages in Pakistan and its Legal Concerns

Abstract

Marriage is a social contract under all religions, customary and conventional laws all over the world. Marriage without consent of a person is considered as an illegal act throughout the world. However, many social and cultural practices deliberately neglect the prerequisite of a civil contract and tend to marry their children without their contract, especially in conservative societies. Muslim societies consider Sharia as a dominant set of rules, over all other laws, which delegates custodian authority to parents. Pakistan in among those societies, where parents normally use their parental authorities and marry their children without their consent, especially in the rural areas of Pakistan. This paper explores the social, cultural and religious aspect of forced marriages in Pakistan responsible for the practice of forced marriages all over Pakistan. The social and cultural norms of Pakistani society and Sharia perspectives are analysed in urging parents conduct forced marriages of their children, mainly considering themselves in a position to decide for their children as their guardians and custodian in a social context where children are trained to obey their parents. The legal aspects of both Sharia and Pakistani legal framework have been investigated in allowing or prohibiting the concept of forced marriages without the consent of children.