ISLAMABAD, Sept 16: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered enhancement of dower money to Rs1 million from Rs500 of Haseeba Lashari, a girl who married against her parents’ wishes and insisted on staying with her husband, come rain or shine; and asked the parents to allow Haseeba to live with her husband.

A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Ijazul Hassan and Justice Chaudhry Ejaz Yousaf, on a suo motu, had directed the family of both husband and wife to appear before the court on Tuesday.

Mohammad Imran Khan Lashari had married Haseeba Lashari, daughter of Ameer Hamza, on December 27 in Faisalabad against the wishes of her parents, but the marriage could not be consummated as the girl went missing.

Mr Lashari then approached the Supreme Court through an application pleading to order the recovery and registration of a case against illegal detention of his wife.

On July 21, the chief justice took notice of the issue and ordered the District Police Officer (DPO) Okara to recover the abducted girl within a week and submit a report in person.

In compliance, a special police raiding party was dispatched to Peshawar on the information provided by the district police and on July 24, Haseeba Lashari was recovered from Hidayat Hotel, Peshawar where she was present along with her mother and sister.

Afterwards, Haseeba was produced before the magistrate in Okara on July 25, who issued orders to send her to “Darul Amaan” (shelter house) Okara for safe custody till her appearance before the apex court.

On Tuesday, Haseeba’s mother Shahnaz Begum and brother Mohammad Abdullah conceded before the apex court that the reconciliation efforts initiated on its orders had failed since the girl, in her 19s, was not willing to come back to her parents.

But the worried brother expressed the fear that her sister might be divorced after the court battle was over, therefore the husband should attach some property in her name as a safety measure.

Mr Lashari, the young husband who is a software developer and a student of law, brushed aside the apprehension and said he lived with his parents and brother and sisters in a small house but assured the court that he was even ready to do manual job to keep his wife happy.

At this the court asked the parents to let the girl live her life, saying in the first place the girl should have considered that she was marrying a man who was not a very well-to-do person. “Now it’s her luck,” the chief justice observed and ordered to amend the column in the ‘Nikahnama’ by increasing the dower money to Rs1 million from Rs500.

“Even if the court had ordered to increase the dower to Rs10 million, I would have happily accepted so because I love my wife and am not going to leave her,” Mr Lashari told Dawn after the hearing in the case.

During the hearing, the court also expressed its displeasure over the District Police Officer Okara for submitting an incomplete report on the dispute.

Assistant Advocate General Punjab Afshan Ghazanfer represented the girl’s family while Advocate Raja Abdur Rehman appeared on behalf of the boy’s family.