MINGORA, Nov 8: A local court here on Thursday remanded two of the five accused into police custody after they were arrested for giving a six-year-old girl in swara to a rival family to settle a marriage dispute between two families in Matta tehsil of Swat.

Police produced Omarzada and Bahadar Khan before the court of Judicial Magistrate Mohibur Rehman. The court remanded the accused into police custody for two days.

The accused were arrested during a raid by police after the girl’s father sought help of District Coordination Officer Kamran Rehman to save his daughter from his rivals, who were bent upon taking the girl in swara.

Sources said that the remaining three accused in the case would be produced before the court on Friday.

They said that Azim Khan, the father of the girl, had some dispute with Bahadar Khan, a resident of Bin Kari village.

Bahadar Khan had claimed that a woman, who was married to the son of Azim Khan, was earlier engaged to his (Bahadar’s) son.

Sources said that Bahadar kidnapped the woman and handed her over to her father after receiving Rs500,000 from him to settle the dispute. But then Bahadar made a new demand and asked Azim to give his minor daughter in swara to them, they added.

Azim Khan approached the DCO office and sought legal protection against his rivals. The DCO directed DPO Gul Afzal Khan to initiate legal action against the accused.

The DCO, when contacted, said that Azim Khan approached his office and sought legal protection against his influential rivals.

He said that swara was an illegal and un-Islamic custom.

He said that he had directed DPO Gul Afzal Khan to protect the girl and initiate legal action against the accused. The DPO tasked additional superintendent of police to probe the matter. Police arrested Bahadar and Omarzada on Wednesday and produced them before the court on Thursday.

Azim Khan told journalists that Bahadar Khan and his brothers Daud and Omarzada were forcing him to hand over his six-year-old daughter in swara to end the dispute.