A father has been arrested in Pakistan for allegedly marrying off his three-year-old daughter to a 60-year-old man for less than £7,000.
Police said that Abdul Baqi, from the border city of Chaman in Balochistan, sold his young daughter to the man, named locally as Salah Uddin, in exchange for 2.5million Pakistani rupees (£6,802), according to the BBC.
The exchange was carried out as part of ‘walwar’, a tradition that sees a male partner’s family give the family of a woman money in exchange for her hand in marriage.
News of the young girl’s alleged marriage to the man went viral, prompting local authorities to launch an investigation into the matter.
They found that while the walwar had been completed on paper, no money had been exchanged.
Middle Eastern news agency The Media Line reported that once the agreed amount had been paid, the marriage arrangement would have taken place and the three-year-old would be considered the 60-year-old’s wife.
Though the girl’s father has been arrested, Salah Uddin has disappeared, with police saying they are hunting him down.
The police investigation into the marriage has also been linked to the k!lling of the young girl’s older sister, Shukriya Bibi.
Shukriya, who was k!lled around two weeks ago in Kuchlak, on the outskirts of Quetta, was the daughter-in-law of Salah Uddin.
Police arrested her husband on suspicion of k!lling her and are also looking into whether a recent dispute between the two families is connected to Shukriya’s death.
The Pakistani province of Balochistan prohibits child marriage, with a 2025 law making it illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to marry an adult.
Adult men convicted of child marriage can face up to three years in prison, as well as a fine of up to 200,000 Pakistani rupees (£540).