Indian Husband Petitions Lahore High Court to Annul Wife’s Pakistani Marriage

An Indian national has filed a constitutional petition in the Lahore High Court seeking to annul his wife’s recent marriage to a Pakistani citizen, alleging that the union was invalid due to the absence of a legal divorce from her first marriage, forced conversion to Islam, and non-compliance with Islamic legal requirements.

Karnail Singh, who claims to be the legal husband of Sarabjeet Kaur, submitted the plea through his counsel, Advocate Ali Changezi Sandhu. Singh, reportedly residing in the United Kingdom, contends that Sarabjeet Kaur remains legally married to him under Indian law, as no judicial divorce has been obtained.

According to the petition, Sarabjeet Kaur, an Indian Sikh woman, travelled to Pakistan in November 2025 as part of a Sikh pilgrimage group for Guru Nanak Dev’s Prakash Purab. She did not return with the group and was later reported to have converted to Islam, adopted the name Noor Fatima, and entered into a nikah with Pakistani national Nasir Hussain.

The petitioner argues that the second marriage violates Pakistani legal procedures for converts, including requirements under Islamic law (as referenced from the Federal Shariat Court) that a woman converting from a non-Muslim marriage must formally invite her former spouse to embrace Islam in the presence of witnesses and observe a waiting period before remarriage. These steps were allegedly not followed.

The petition further accuses the marriage of involving forced conversion and includes serious allegations of coercion, blackmail through private images and videos, and even rape against Nasir Hussain for knowingly contracting marriage with an already-married woman. Singh has sought a court declaration that the nikah is void, directions for Sarabjeet Kaur’s deportation under Pakistan’s Foreigners Act, 1946, for alleged visa violations, and initiation of appropriate criminal proceedings.

The case has drawn attention due to its cross-border implications involving India and Pakistan, religious conversion, and interfaith marriage laws. Earlier reports indicate diplomatic and legal scrutiny in both countries following Sarabjeet Kaur’s disappearance from the pilgrimage group and subsequent marriage announcement.