PESHAWAR – A petition has been filed in the Peshawar High Court (PHC) seeking to raise the minimum marriage age for girls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 16 to 18 years.
The petition was filed by Lina Qamar War Maham Nafis through Advocate Imran Khan, naming the federal and provincial governments, the Secretary of Law and other relevant authorities as respondents.
The petitioner argued that while the minimum marriage age is 18 in other provinces of the country, it remains 16 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to the petition, following the 18th Constitutional Amendment, the governments of Islamabad, Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan amended their respective laws, but the minimum marriage age in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has remained unchanged at 16.
The petitioner further maintained that underage marriages are contributing to family-related problems.
The petition seeks directions to raise the minimum marriage age for girls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 16 to 18 years.
