Lahore court awards two brothers death sentence over honour killing

Sessions court in Lahore also imposes fine of Rs1 million on both the accused


Babar Naveed February 29, 2016
STOCK IMAGE

LAHORE: A sessions court in Lahore on Monday sentenced two brothers to death in a double murder case.

Zeeshan and Ahsan had killed their sister Saba and her husband Shafique in 2009 for ‘honour’ after the couple had married of their own free will.

Besides awarding the death sentence, Additional Sessions Judge Naveed Iqbal also imposed a fine of Rs1 million on both the accused.

Honour killing issue would gain traction if film wins Oscar: Sharmeen Obaid

Saba and Shafique, the residents of Yaki Gate Lahore, had left the area over fears of being killed by their relatives after they chose to tie the knot nearly six years ago.

However, a few months after their wedding, Ahsan and Zeeshan invited the couple to their home for a lunch and shot them dead with a gun.

Following the murder, Yaki Gate police had registered a case of double murder in 2009 against the accused. Advocate Chaudhry Mohammad Imran appeared in the court on behalf of the victims.

The judgement in the 'honour' killing case coincided with filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy winning her second Oscar award for the best documentary, A Girl in the River, a short film which sheds light on honour killings in the country.

Sharmeen Obaid wins second Oscar award

In Pakistan, a loophole in the law allows perpetrators of so-called honour killings to get off scot-free if they are pardoned by their family. Sharmeen wants to change that.

Last week, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had hosted a screening of the film in Islamabad and promised to rid Pakistan of the crime by tightening up the legislation.

COMMENTS (4)

Shahid Akram | 8 years ago | Reply Nobody kill other person. Honour killing is Jahalat.
Sam | 8 years ago | Reply All lives matter and no one should be allowed to go free. Let every murderer face the taste of their foul deeds but do it fast.
VIEW MORE COMMENTS
Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ