akeema*, a 22-year-old woman from Tharparkar, married a man a few months ago. Shortly after the marriage, she sought divorce from her husband and was quite insistent. A short while later, she was married to another man.

Such marriages are not an uncommon occurrence in the region.

Hakeema was actually sold by her parents for over a million rupees. The transaction took place with the help of an agent who was supposed to find a wealthy man who could afford to buy a bride.

The agent found an acceptable man, and the deal was struck for a sum between Rs 1.2 million and Rs 1.5 million. Hakeema says that when she went over to live with her in-laws, she was treated very shabbily. She says their treatment of her bordered on inhuman. This went on for many days and weeks. Hakeema says that “I was treated as if I had committed a terrible crime. They were punishing me for the money they had parted with.”

Finally, she managed to flee from her husband’s house and met with the agent who had facilitated the marriage. Upon her insistence, the agent and Hakeema’s parents ended her marriage and secured a divorce.

The payment of money didn’t stop with her first marriage. Soon afterwards, Hakeema was sold to another man for a hefty amount. She is now living with the man who paid for her. It may appear that he is her owner and not her husband in a regular ense. She is a woman who has already been sold twice in the name of marriage.

The marriage mart has a literal form here. Women are regularly sold to the highest bidder and treated like commodities by their families. 

Hakeema is not the only woman who has had to suffer such treatment. There are many women like her in Sindh.

The marriage mart has a literal form in parts of Sindh. Women are regularly sold to the highest bidders and treated by their families like commodities.

The number of women so sold in the name of marriage is not known. In December 2019, a story had surfaced in the media that more than 600 Pakistani brides had been sold to men in China. The story said that the women and girls were sold with parental consent. Herodotus, the Greek historian known as the father of history, wrote about the Babylonian people who he said used to auction their daughters in the Fifth Century. Apparently the practice is going on in the 21^st Century Sindh.

There have also been complaints of non-Muslim women being converted and sold to Muslim men with parental consent.

This business works the same way as other trade in commodities. The buyers can turn sellers if a lucrative deal is on offer. Instances of a woman being sold multiple times are not unheard of.

Bride-selling is neither new nor in its way out. Unless authorities take notice and strict action the practice will likely continue. In the long run, there is also need for raising awareness in the communities against the harm of such practices.

*Names have been changed to protect identities

The writer is a multimedia journalist. His X handle is @BabarAliPalli. He can be reached at pallibabar@gmail.com