WEB DESK
The ministry of religious affairs has constituted a high-level committee to deal with the issue of underage marriages in Pakistan.
Under its mandate, the committee would devise suggestions and recommendations to set the minimum age for marriage.
Dr Qibla Ayaz, the chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology, would head the committee while prominent religious scholars from different schools of thought would act as the members of the committee.
The committee would devise proposals to fix the age of marriages and other related issues. The committee will also come up with recommendations to specify the details of Nikah-Nama (marriage contract) and its interrelated clauses.
The panel will also present its viewpoint on the amount of the Haq-Mehar, or dower, and its process of payment.
The committee would submit its report to the ministry of religious affairs.
In Pakistan, only the Sindh province has set the minimum age for marriage at 18 years for women.
