Accused challenges court order to speed up trial

The lawyer for the suspect says there is no urgency to conduct the trial on a day-to-day basis

LAHORE: Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday issued a notice to a girl victim, who was stabbed 23 times, on the application of the accused in the case; Shah Hussain. The suspect is also the victim’s class fellow in law school.

The accused challenged the May 23 administrative order of Lahore High Court Chief Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah who ordered a judicial magistrate to conclude the trial in stabbing case of law student Khadija Siddiqui within a month.

The lawyer for the accused said it was a case of an ordinary nature and there was no urgency to conduct a trial on a day-to-day basis. He requested the court declare the chief justice’s administrative order as illegal.

The LHC chief justice earlier sought a report from the Lahore district and sessions judge about progress in the attempted murder case of the law student.



After the submission of the report, the chief justice ordered Judicial Magistrate Mubashir Hussain Awan to hold trial proceedings on a day-to-day basis and conclude it within 30 days.

The chief justice also directed the director general of district judiciary to keep the LHC updated with the progress of the case by submitting weekly reports.

Khadija, a student at a private law college, was allegedly attacked by her class fellow Shah Hussain on May 3, 2016 near Shimla Hill where she, along with her driver, had gone to pick her younger sister from school.

Both sisters were about to get into their car when a helmet wearing suspect attacked Khadija with knife and stabbed her 23 times, leaving her critically injured.

The Civil Lines police registered a case against Shah Hussain on charges of attempted murder. The suspect, son of an advocate Tanvir Hashmi, was on post arrest bail.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2017.