SWABI: The police on Wednesday recovered a girl, who was allegedly sold for Rs50,000 to a man from Punjab, and arrested three accused.

The incident occurred in the Chota Lahor tehsil, the police said, adding that the girl’s father, Ayaz Khan, was reportedly kept in the dark about the matter by his wife.

Haris Khan, a relative of Ayaz, while filing a report in the Chota Lahor city police station, said that Ayaz had left his 12-year-old daughter with him (the complainant) when she was a child due to poverty to look after her.

He told the police that the girl’s mother, Tanzeem Bibi, allegedly took her daughter to her house on the day of the occurrence.

However, Haris told the police that he came to know that Tanzeem Bibi and the girl’s grandfather, Said Kamal, had sold her to a man, Manzoor Abbas, 37, who hailed from a village in Chakwal. The complainant said that the girl’s nikah was solemnised with the man and they were preparing to leave for Chakwal.

Chota Lahor city police station SHO Haroon Khan said that as they came to know about the development, they raided the house of Ayaz and arrested Abbas, Kamal and Tanzeem Bibi.

The SHO said the police registered a case against them under sections 366, 372 and 373 of the Pakistan Penal Code. He said necessary steps were being taken to provide legal protection to the victim girl.

The police said that in the preliminary investigation, the three accused admitted to their involvement in the matter.

Liaqat Ali, spokesperson for the police, told Dawn that the girl had been handed over to Haris.

Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2026