Daily Times

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Monday said that the whereabouts of Dua Zehra, a teenage girl allegedly kidnapped from Karachi’s Al Falah area last week, have been traced.

Speaking at a press conference, Shah did not provide further details as he said the matter was “sensitive”.

Following reports of her being traced, Sindh Women Development Minister Syeda Shehla Raza reached the girl’s house and told journalists that the AIG has not confirmed whether the girl has been recovered yet. “Sindh police will make an official statement once the girl’s video statement is released […] IG has made it clear that the video statement is necessary for further probe,” Raza said.

The minister noted that despite reports claiming that the girl went to Lahore out of her own free will, she was a minor and cannot do so under the law. “When the girl will record her statement in the court then the judiciary would ask her to reconsider the marriage till she turns 18. Once she is recovered [and after the necessary judicial matters are done] she will stay at the child protection bureau till she is 18 years old,” Raza said.

Raza added she saw the girl’s Child Registration Certificate (CRC) – also known as B-form – and in line with that, her marriage – if solemnised – would stand invalid as she is under 18.

Certain media reports claimed the girl had been found in Lahore. However, Lahore police denied these reports and said the search to locate the girl was underway.

Lahore DIG (Operations) Dr Mohammad Abid Khan said Karachi police had provided Lahore police with a copy of a nikahnama (marriage certificate). “Police are searching for the girl using the address on the marriage certificate,” he said, adding that there was no truth to reports that she had been found by officials. “The real facts will only surface once she is recovered. Lahore police is in constant contact with Karachi police,” he said. The official said that teams had been formed and that Dua would soon be found.

In a video statement that surfaced on Monday, Kazmi said that nobody had kidnapped her and that she tied the knot willingly. “I am very happy,” she said, adding that she got married on April 18. She also requested to remove her videos from social media.

The incident had initially provoked an outcry, especially on social media, which had prompted authorities to take notice. According to the police, 14-year-old girl Dua was kidnapped on April 16 when she left the house house to toss some garbage.

On Saturday, police investigators probing the case sought technical assistance from intelligence agencies to locate the teenager. The Anti-Violent Crime Cell chief had said that the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) Cyber Crime Wing (CCW), which has expertise in accessing social media groups, was also helping them technologically.

Separately, the FIA’s CCW head Imran Riaz visited Dua’s house last week with its four-member team, including a forensic expert, technical analyst, female investigation officer and female psychologist.

He said that the FIA had made “emergency contact with Google, Samsung and [an] online gaming platform”.

The Sindh government has been under criticism ever since the case emerged. Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh had alleged that the police were not taking the case seriously.

“The police’s lack of seriousness in the case is a matter of concern,” said the PTI leader, accusing the authorities of “misleading” the girl’s parents.

Sheikh added that the police and the provincial government appeared to have failed to recover the girl. The police, instead of performing their duty, were allegedly involved in the “character assassination” of the girl, he added.

The PTI leader had also advised PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to focus on Sindh instead of taking foreign trips.