A Muslim cleric has been charged with forced marriage after allegedly illegally allowing two children to marry each other.
Ashraf Osmani, 52, allegedly conducted a Nikah marriage ceremony in November 2023, involving two 16-year-old children at the Central Mosque in the Midlands town.
He is the serving Imam, the Mosque’s most senior Muslim cleric.
The Bangladesh-born British national will appear before Northampton Magistrates' Court on Thursday, September 11.
The Bangladesh-born British national will appear before Northampton Magistrates' Court on Thursday, September 11
|The Northamptonshire religious leader will be 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.
The section makes it a criminal offence in England and Wales for a person to force another individual into marriage through violence, threats, or coercion.
It also covers deception to make someone leave the UK for the purpose of forcing them into marriage and causing a child under 18 to enter into marriage.
As of 2022, causing a child under 18 to marry, even without coercion, is included in the section.
Ashraf Osmani allegedly conducted a Nikah marriage ceremony in November 2023
|If convicted of an offence of forced marriage, a person can face imprisonment for up to seven years if dealt with in the Crown Court.
Victims of forced marriage are granted lifelong anonymity, meaning they have the right to remain anonymous.
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