KARACHI: Christian organisations and rights groups held demonstrations outside the Karachi Press Club on Sunday, expressing concern over the safety of minor girls and their forced marriages and conversions.
Groups, including the National Christian Party, Gawahi Mission Trust, and other civil society representatives, organised separate protests.
The participants, including women and young girls, carried placards and chanted slogans, demanding protection against forced marriages and alleged forced religious conversions.
Leaders of the demonstrations, including Bishop Kashif, Shazia Samoon, Shabbir Shafqat, Pastor Sarfraz William, Parveen Parvez and Dr Sultan Sardar Bhatti, said the Christian community was a peaceful segment of society but was increasingly concerned about incidents involving underage girls.
The speakers, while addressing the demonstrations, claimed that minor girls from the community were being abducted, coerced into changing their religion, and married off, stressing that such practices must be stopped through the effective enforcement of laws.
They also highlighted growing anxiety within the community following the recent court ruling, which they said had raised serious legal and social questions.
The protesters urged the chief justice of the Federal Constitutional Court to review the decision in the Maria case and called on the president and prime minister to take immediate notice of the situation.
They also demanded stronger legislation, as well as the strict implementation of existing laws prohibiting child marriage.
They questioned how minors, who cannot independently obtain identity documents, could be considered capable of making decisions regarding religion and marriage.
The demonstrators called for united support from all religious communities and emphasised that equal rights and protection must be ensured for minorities.
They demanded that all “controversial laws and decisions” affecting minority communities be revisited through consultation with stakeholders, adding that failure to address these concerns could deepen a sense of insecurity among minority families.
Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2026