DERA ISMAIL KHAN: The police on Tuesday arrested five persons, including a cleric and four members of a panchayat, a so-called council of elders, for marrying off an eight-year-old girl under the practice of vani in the Parova tehsil of Dera Ismail Khan a day earlier.

The girl was purportedly wed to a 12-year-old boy.

The case came to light following an earlier incident in which two suspects allegedly raped a 12-year-old boy. In response, a four-member panchayat, including the local mosque’s cleric — is reported to have ordered that the sister of one of the accused be given in vani and married to the victim. The marriage was then performed by a local nikahkhwan.

On Tuesday evening, Gomal University police station detained all the individuals involved in the case, including the nikahkhwan and the four panchayat members after registering a case against them.

District police officer Sajjad Ahmad said the practice of vani was illegal, and there would be no leniency toward those who violated the law.

Published in Dawn, May 28th, 2025