Heinous crime: Chief justice takes notice of attempt to immolate child

Directs RPO, Rawalpindi district health officer to submit report

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar has taken notice of an incident where a nine-year-old girl was allegedly set on fire after being doused in petrol.

The child suffered 50 per cent burns and was admitted to the burn centre at Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi, where doctors described her condition as critical. The victim’s family said her face was completely burnt.

While taking notice of the issue, the CJP directed the Rawalpindi regional police officer and Rawalpindi district health officer to submit a report to the Supreme Court within 48 hours.

On Sunday, The Express Tribune reported that five men allegedly set a nine-year-old girl on fire.

She is under treatment at the burn centre at Holy Family Hospital, where doctors described her condition as critical.

In a complaint filed with the Ratta Amral police, Muhammad Asif, a resident of Abbottabad, said that on Sunday morning, he had gone with his wife and daughter to visit his brother-in-law, who had recently been shot at, allegedly by Tariq and some unidentified people.

He said his daughter, I*, had gone to a nearby shop to buy some candy. There, he alleged, Tariq, Mehtab, and three of their unidentified accomplices poured petrol on his daughter and set her alight.

Despite her injuries, the child was able to give a statement to Ratta Amral police investigators and confirmed that five men had stopped her when she was returning to the house in the morning.

The Ratta Amral police have registered an attempted murder case against Tariq, Mehtab, and the three unidentified men.

On January 24, Ashiq had registered an attempted murder case against unidentified men for shooting him.
*Name withheld to protect identity

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2017.