Doctors confirm couple in Karachi was electrocuted to death

Police exhume bodies of teenage couple in Sherpao Colony

KARACHI: The bodies of a couple killed in a case of honour killing by their families were exhumed on Wednesday at a local graveyard for post-mortem. Forensic experts and doctors confirmed that the victims were electrocuted to death and that their bodies also bore other marks of torture.

The bodies were buried in secret in the Maula Madad graveyard in Sherpao Colony in District Malir. "Both the bodies have been exhumed under the supervision of the magistrate for chemical examination and post-mortem," explained District Malir SSP Rao Anwar. Besides the magistrate and senior police officials, a team of forensic experts and doctors, including police surgeon Aijaz Khokhar, female medico-legal officer Sumaiya Saeed, head of the forensic department of Jinnah Sindh Medical University Dr Farhat Mirza and Civil Hospital, Karachi in-charge Dr Qarar Abbasi were present during the exhumation.

"It has now been confirmed that the couple was electrocuted to death," confirmed Dr Abbasi. He told The Express Tribune that the couple was tortured before being electrocuted to death. "The girl’s body had an electrocution mark on her shoulder and also bore marks of torture on the rest of her shoulders and on her feet,” he explained. "The boy’s body bore electrocution marks on his ears, shoulders, chest, head and feet and also bore several other torture marks,” he said.



Dr Abbasi said this was the first time he had seen such brutality in a case of honour killing. "I have examined the bodies of honour killing victims a number of times in Karachi but this is the first time I have seen this," he said. "Usually, strangulation and gunshots are the favourite tools of those who kill for honour.”

Dr Abbasi said the doctors have issued their initial report confirming that the victims were electrocuted to death, while samples have also been taken to ascertain whether they were poisoned or not.

SSP Anwar said that four suspects - including the victims' fathers and uncles - have already been arrested, while the key suspect who was the 'sarpanj', Sartaj, has reportedly escaped to Rawalpindi. A special police team headed by Shah Latif SHO Amanullah Marwat has been dispatched to arrest him.

The teenage couple was electrocuted to death by their family members in the middle of August after they eloped. Their families secretly buried the bodies at a graveyard in Sherpao Colony and the police came to know of murder through an informant. A case was filed on behalf of the state.