Arab contract marriages surface in Hyderabad again

The dreaded Arab marriages, the contract marriages of Hyderabad that haunted the poor minority girls of old city in eighties and nineties have surfaced once again.

A 17 year old minor girl who was forced into a 15-day contract marriage with a 70-year-old Omani National managed to contact the police who rescued her from a house in Hafeezbaba Nagar in Kanchanbagh on Friday. The Omani National, Shaikh Khamis Mohammad Khamis was arrested and her mother had connived with brokers to facilitate the marriage, police said.

The marriage took place on Thursday for the 15-day contract period; the girl's mother received allegedly Rs one lakh. On Friday, the girl with the help of a relative contacted south zone DCP V Satyanarayana and narrated her plight. The DCP rushed a police team and rescued the girl from a house in Hafeezbaba Nagar in Kanchanbagh and arrested the Omani National, the girl's mother and brokers involved. The accused had not even involved a Qazi in the contract marriage.

Police said Khamis came to the city nearly 10 days ago and contacted two brokers including a woman. These two brokers contacted the victim's mother and struck the deal. The victim's father had passed away some years ago.

"Since the police have kept a strict vigil on Qazis for some time now to crack down on contract marriages, none came forward to perform this particular marriage. The victim was completely averse to the marriage and was forced into it,'' DCP V Satyanarayana said.

With the girl's statement, the Hyderabad police have booked a case under Nirbhaya against brokers, Omani National and also the victim’s mother.