HC summons marriage registrar who conducted marriage of ‘minor’ girl in Feni
The High Court today summoned a marriage registrar, who had performed the marriage ceremony of a girl, who is said to be 15-years-old at the time, with one Zahidul Islam, 22.
Zahid has been accused in an abduction case filed by the girl's father.
The court asked Marriage Registrar Sirajul Islam Majumder to appear along with the documents of the marriage registration before it at 10:30am on March 16 to explain why he conducted the marriage of someone below 18, which is illegal under the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 2017.
The HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Md Mostafizur Rahman came up with the summons order during the hearing of a petition filed by Zahidul Islam seeking bail in the case.
The HC today also issued a rule asking the state to explain in four weeks why Zahidul should not be granted bail in the case.
Police arrested Zahidul on October 27 last year in connection with the case and also rescued the girl from his home the same day, the DAG said.
Deputy Attorney General Sarwar Hossain Bappi told The Daily Star that the HC judges found from the documents that Sirajul had performed the marriage ceremony on August 18 last year and issued the registration of marriage on August 29 last year when the age of the girl was 15 according to the first information report (FIR) of the abduction case.
The girl's father Abdul Mannan from Bagadana village under Sonagazi upazila of Feni filed the case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000 with Sonagazi Police Station on October 24 last year against Zahidul Islam and three others from Alampur village of the same upazila.
Zahidul's lawyer Shah Emran told The Daily Star that the age of the girl was 18 and Zahidul's age was 22 during the wedding, according to the marriage registration documents.
The issue regarding their ages will be settled at the trial proceedings of the case at the lower court, he added.
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