The move follows the example of Sindh and Islamabad to control early and forced marriages across the province.

This announcement was made by Qaiser Mehmood, the Divisional Coordinator of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women, during an international conference organized by Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy (PODA) in collaboration with the Royal Norwegian Embassy, Ministry of Human Rights, and the Women’s Parliamentary Caucus.

The event was attended by religious scholars and experts from several Muslim countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Yemen, Indonesia, Morocco, Oman, Nigeria, Rwanda, Syria, and Tunisia.

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According to Mehmood, the draft bill has already been prepared and is currently awaiting approval from Chief Minister Marium Nawaz Sharif. Under the proposed law, any adult marrying a girl below 18 years will face two years in prison and a fine of Rs2,000,000. Nikah registrars and witnesses involved in such marriages will also be punished with jail terms of two to three years.

The announcement received widespread appreciation from participants, who expressed hope that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan would soon follow Punjab’s example.

President of Pakistan’s spokesperson, Murtaza Solangi, called child marriage a violation of human rights and urged for constitutional reforms. He emphasized the need to strengthen laws and raise family awareness to protect girls’ health, education, and future from the devastating effects of early marriage.

According to UNICEF, around 19 million girls in Pakistan were married during childhood, and one in every six girls is married before turning 18. Experts at the conference urged the government to develop a national action plan to eliminate child marriage and address its social and health consequences effectively.