Suitor throws acid on woman and mother

Naeem attacked both women after his proposal was rejected.

MULTAN: A mother and daughter were burnt after a neighbour threw acid on them on Friday.

Mumtazabad Colony resident 48-year-old Basheeran and her 21-year-old daughter Naila were going to a market near their house, when their neighbour Naeem threw acid on them.

Eyewitnesses said that the incident took place in broad daylight and that Naeem attacked the women in the middle of a crowded market. “We just saw him hurling abuses at them first and when they answered him back he suddenly produced two bottles of acid,” said a resident of Mumtazabad Colony Qasim. “There were dozens of people around to witness the incident but the moment we reached to rescue the women he took off,” Qasim said.

Basheeran’s neighbour Qudsia said that Naeem had good relations with the family and used to visit their house often. She said that Naeem was an old family friend and had been living in the area for over three years.

“He had proposed to Naila but the family had already agreed to another proposal. They rejected his first proposal but then he returned and protested again the next day,” Qudsia said.

Basheeran’s neighbours said that Naeem had proposed two days ago and that he had come seeking a response on Thursday morning but was rejected. “He came back the next day and proposed but was extremely angry when he was turned down. He broke some things in the house and I was told he left in a rage,” Qudsia told the police.

On Friday afternoon, Naeem attacked both mother and daughter with several bottles of acid and fled the scene. Eyewitnesses transferred Naila and her mother to Nishtar Hospital Multan and informed the police.

Mumtazabad Police has lodged an FIR no 54/2011 under Sections 324 and 788 and Station House Officer (SHO) Rashid Malik said that police had arrested Naeem during a raid in the village. “When we arrived at the scene several people told us that he attacked the women in public but then ran away. They said that they didn’t follow him because they were busy taking care of the injured women,” Malik said.

Naila and her mother Basheeran have sustained severe injuries and are currently in the hospital.

The victims are being treated in Nishtar Hospital’s Ward no5 and attending Dr Waqas said that both mother and daughter were in critical condition. “The acid has burnt the left hand and more than 20 percent of Naila’s body but she has not yet woken up.  Her mother has sustained over 70 percent burns to her body,” he said. Dr Waqas said that Naila had also suffered internal injuries “She may have swallowed some of the acid and we are trying to pump her stomach,” he said.

The names of the victims have been altered to protect their identity.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 23^rd, 2011.