Nottingham Couple Receive Suspended Sentences for Underage Marriage of Sons in Pakistan
A Nottingham husband and wife, whose identities remain protected, have been handed suspended prison sentences following their conviction for orchestrating the marriages of their underage sons in Pakistan. The couple, aged in their 50s and 40s, pleaded guilty to charges related to causing a child under 18 to enter into marriage.
Nottingham Crown Court heard that in early 2023, the parents travelled to Pakistan with their sons specifically to arrange marriages. Initially, a bride from Pakistan was intended for one brother; however, upon his rejection, she was subsequently married to the other brother in a Nikkah ceremony.
The court acknowledged the parents claimed unawareness of the 2022 legal amendment, which criminalised child marriage for individuals under 18, regardless of coercion or whether the ceremony was legally binding in England and Wales. This Act, effective from 27 February 2023, abolished the previous provision permitting 16 and 17-year-olds to marry with parental consent.
Arrested in June 2023 following concerns raised by an educational institution, an investigation uncovered evidence, including messages and photographs from their phones, that contradicted their initial claims of a family holiday. Messages from the father in February 2023 explicitly sought a “rishta” – a marriage proposal – for both sons, indicating a clear intention to bypass “the Western world.”
Judge James Sampson, while accepting no evidence of direct threats or violence, emphasised the public’s strong disapproval of the practice. He highlighted that the parents, lacking prior convictions, acted on “misguided cultural beliefs, rather than malice.” Nonetheless, Sampson remarked on the bride’s position, noting she was treated “as if she were a piece of chattel” after being rejected by one son. Each parent received a two-month suspended sentence, a 12-month suspension period, and was ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid community work.
Emma Cornell of the Crown Prosecution Service stated that these laws protect children from the detrimental effects of early marriage, affirming that the legislation applies regardless of where the offending occurs.
