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The brother of a Harry Potter star was jailed for six months today for a "prolonged and nasty" attack in which she was beaten and branded a "slag" for dating a non-Muslim.
Afshan Azad, 21, who played Padma Patil, a classmate of the teenage wizard, in the blockbuster Hollywood films based on JK Rowling's children's books, feared for her life during the three-hour ordeal, Manchester Crown Court heard.
She was punched, dragged around by her hair and strangled by her brother Ashraf Azad, 28, who threatened to kill her after he caught her talking on the phone to her Hindu boyfriend on May 21 last year, the court was told.
During the row at the family home in Longsight, Manchester, which also involved her mother and father, she was branded a "slag" and a "prostitute" and told: "Marry a Muslim or you die!"
"She realised she would have to leave and felt she could not live any longer in that environment," Mr Vardon said.
"She was genuinely fearing for her life."
The assault left Miss Azad with swelling, grazes and bruises around her eyes, face, left ear, forehead and forearms.
Both her father and brother were originally charged with making threats to kill her and her brother was also charged with assault.
Instead of both going on trial, at a hearing last month the prosecution agreed to accept a plea of guilty to assault from her brother, and both men were formally found not guilty of making threats to kill.
Her father accepted being bound over to keep the peace for 12 months in the sum of £500.
During the last hearing, lawyers said attempts to get the victim to come to court to give evidence against her father and brother had been unsuccessful and Miss Azad would not attend voluntarily.
Brother jailed for attacking Harry Potter star - Europe, World News - Independent.ie
Battered victim pleads for leniency because she is afraid for her life. This is what is known as "Sharia Law".