Custody of Minors in the Context of Forced Conversion: A Socio-Legal Analysis

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_24How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Forced Conversion; Forced Marriage; Religious Freedom; Minority Rights; Human Rights

Abstract

Forced Conversion (FC) of minor girls belonging to minorities in remote regions of Pakistan is an escalating socio-legal and human rights concern that violates both domestic and international legal frameworks. The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, guarantees freedom of religion and the right to liberty. These fundamental rights are further reinforced by international instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Nevertheless, numerous cases of abduction and forced marriages are frequently reported in Sindh and Southern Punjab, where minor girls are compelled to renounce their faith and marry their abductors. Accordingly, this study aims to examine how the Pakistani legal system addresses the issue of FC involving minor girls and safeguards the fundamental rights of religious minorities. This research proposes a framework for the protection of child rights, particularly in the context of the liberty and freedom to hold and practice religion. This research adopts a socio-legal approach with a qualitative research methodology based on library data. The findings reveal that legal loopholes, inadequate enforcement, and pervasive social pressures contribute to the misapplication of laws, often enabling abductors to retain custody while victims are coerced into marriage under duress. This article contends that there is an urgent need for targeted legislation addressing FC, especially those involving minors, to ensure the protection of religious freedom and the fulfillment of Pakistan’s constitutional and international human rights obligations, while fostering interfaith harmony and equal citizenship for all communities.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Download article (PDF)

TY  - CONF
AU  - Muhammad Hammad Chaudary
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/07
TI  - Custody of Minors in the Context of Forced Conversion: A Socio-Legal Analysis
BT  - Proceedings of the UUM 13th International Legal Conference 2025 (UUMILC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 335
EP  - 348
SN  - 2667-128X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_24
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_24
ID  - Chaudary2026
ER  -