Saneha Sharif (14) has been rescued and reunited with her family nearly two months after her kidnapping. She was one of three Christian girls abducted by Muslims from their homes in Punjab province in January 2025. Another of the abducted girls, Saba Shafique (12), was recovered by police on 5 March (see section below). There have been no developments in the case of the third girl, Ariha Gulzar (12), who remains with her abductors.
Saneha was abducted on 9 January outside her home in the Korpur area of Sialkot, Punjab province. Her father Sharif Masih said she was lured out of the house by a Muslim girl whose family had recently moved to the neighbourhood and was bundled into a van and driven away.
Sharif, who works as a sweeper at a wedding marquee and is a member of the Brethren church, said his wife Sonam Bibi became ill after their daughter’s disappearance and required hospital treatment twice. The Edge Foundation, a human rights organisation advocating for persecuted minorities, stepped in to help them pursue justice.
A First Information Report was registered with police, leading to the arrest of key suspects, one of whom was placed under a six-day remand for interrogation. Despite these arrests, however, Saneha remained missing for weeks.
The Edge Foundation’s legal team, led by lawyers Alber Victor and Sohail Gill, filed a petition at the Lahore High Court and Justice Amjad Rafique subsequently ordered law enforcement to recover Saneha and present her in court.
Following intense legal pressure, police recovered Saneha on 19 February in a late-night operation and placed her in protective custody. The next morning, she was presented before a magistrate’s court to record her personal statement, but due to the trauma of her captivity and the intimidation she had faced she was unable to articulate her ordeal clearly. Rather than being released to her parents, she was sent to Darul Aman (a government shelter home) pending further legal proceedings.
Over the following weeks, Saneha was presented multiple times in court, yet each time was unable to express her experience fully due to the pressures being exerted on her. On 3 March she was again presented in the Lahore High Court, but instead of being returned to her family, she was sent back to Darul Aman.
The Edge Foundation legal team continued to fight for Saneha’s safe return and on 6 March at 1 pm she was once again presented before the Judicial Magistrate Court in Sialkot. Represented by Alber Victor, she was given the opportunity to speak freely before the court and for the first time she expressed her clear desire to return to her parents. The court granted permission for her release and following the completion of legal formalities she was officially discharged from the shelter home and reunited with her parents, who were overcome with emotion as they embraced their daughter after nearly two months of separation. Expressing gratitude for the unwavering support of the Edge Foundation and its legal team, the family called for greater protections for minority girls at risk of similar abductions.
Edge Foundation chairperson Azhar S Malik praised the legal team’s tireless efforts, stating: “Justice has finally prevailed. This has been an extremely challenging time for our legal and paralegal teams, especially for our dedicated lawyers Alber and Sohail Gill, who have worked relentlessly to ensure Saneha’s safe return. This victory is not just for one family but for every persecuted minority child who has been a victim of such heinous crimes. It sends a clear message that justice can be achieved when the legal system works in favour of the oppressed. However, our fight does not end here. We must continue to push for stronger laws and stricter enforcement to protect minority girls from abduction and forced conversions.”
In a press release on 6 March, the Edge Foundation stated: “This case serves as a critical precedent in the fight against the forced abduction and conversion of minority girls in Pakistan. While this legal victory is significant, human rights activists and legal experts stress the urgent need for stronger enforcement of child protection laws to prevent similar cases in the future… The successful legal intervention in this case offers hope to many other families facing the same ordeal and highlights the importance of legal advocacy, community support and international pressure in securing justice.”
Rescue of Saba Shafique
Twelve-year-old Saba Shafique (pictured with her mother) was rescued on 5 March when Lahore Police assisted by Sindh Police raided an outhouse in a village where they recovered Saba and arrested her abductor. She had been held captive for two months by a Muslim neighbour who forcibly converted her to Islam and coerced her into marrying him.
After Saba was reunited with her family, her mother, Rakhil Shafique, said “I cannot express my joy when I hugged Saba after so many days. Her father and I haven’t been able to sleep properly all this time, but now we will finally take rest.”
Saba gave some details of her ordeal saying, “During the time I was there, he [the abductor] did bad things with me which numbed my mind and body. He also beat me whenever I used to cry for my parents and told him that I wanted to go back home. I was kept locked in a room most of the time.”
She also said that she was forced to record a video saying, “I had converted to Islam and married him of my free will. I was also forced to state that I’m 18 years old, and that my parents should not take any action against us.”
Abduction, forced conversion and marriage
Abduction, forced conversion and marriage of young girls is an ongoing problem for Christian and Hindu families in Pakistan, the perpetrators being much older Muslim men who are often already married with children. Police are slow to register reports of abductions and when cases come to court judges often ignore documentary evidence of the children’s ages and rule on the basis of Sharia law, which allows for very young marriage, rather than federal law. The young girls, who are often pressurised to record false statements in favour of their new “husbands”, are handed back to them and lose contact with their families.
It is believed that forced religious conversions linked to forced marriages affect as many as 1,000 girls each year belonging to religious minorities (Christian and Hindu) in Pakistan.
(CLAAS, Edge Foundation, Christian Daily International-Morning Star News)
Photo credits: Saneha Sharif – Edge Foundation
Saba Shafique – Christian Daily International-Morning Star News