Imam Charged for Conducting Illegal Child Marriage in Mosque

An imam has been charged under forced marriage legislation with illegally allowing two children to marry each other at a mosque, police said.

Ashraf Osmani, 52, of Abington Avenue, Northampton, will appear in court charged under Section 121 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act, as amended by the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022.

Northamptonshire Police said in a statement: “It is alleged Osmani conducted a nikah marriage ceremony in November 2023, involving two 16-year-old children at the Central Mosque Northampton, where he is the serving imam, the mosque’s most senior Muslim cleric.

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“Osmani, a Bangladesh-born British national, will appear before Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday September 11.”

A Nikah is the central Islamic marriage ceremony where a couple makes a sacred, lifelong contract, requiring the presence of the bride, groom, their legal guardians (wali), and two Muslim witnesses, usually officiated by an Imam.