PESHAWAR, May 9: The Peshawar High Court on Friday granted bail to a person who married a girl against wishes of her family and seven of his family members charged under the Hudood law.

A single bench comprising Justice Ghulam Mohiuddin Malik accepted bail petition of the eight accused-persons and directed that they should be released after furnishing two sureties of Rs200,000 each.

The prime accused, Rehmat Ali, and his close relatives Asar Ali, Thor Gul and others were arrested by the police after a complaint was lodged by brother of a female, charging the accused of entering his residence on Jan 23, 2008, and forcibly taking away his sister and his two brothers.

The alleged incident had taken place in Swat district. An FIR was registered by the officials of Kabal police station on Jan 28 under section 10, 11 and 16 of the Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979, read with section 452 of Pakistan Penal Code. The police later recovered the woman from the residence of Rehmat Ali.

Advocate Noor Alam Khan appeared for the petitioners and contended that they had not abducted the girl and in fact it was a case of love marriage. He stated that the girl in her statement had claimed that she was engaged with Rehmat Ali, but later on her parents wanted to arrange her marriage with someone else.

The counsel stated that the girl had stated that she wanted to marry her fiancé and due to same reason she went away with him and married him with her free will.

Mr Khan pointed out that through the women protection Act the law had now been amended and section 10, 11 and 16 of the Zina Ordinance, dealing with abduction of a woman for the purpose of forcing her to marriage, had been repealed. He added that the police had registered the case under wrong section of laws.

The counsel further stated that under section 156-B of Criminal Procedure Code investigation in a case registered under the Zina Ordinance had to be conducted by an officer not below the rank of superintendent of police, but in the present case investigation was conducted by a sub-inspector.