Senators criticise K-P govt for not having forensic facility

Senator Nasreen Jalil says all provinces should have forensic labs similar to the one in Punjab

PESHAWAR: Members of a Senate standing committee, while visiting Mardan on Thursday in connection with the rape and murder case of a minor girl, expressed displeasure over lack of forensic testing facilities in Khyber-Pakhtunkha (K-P).

Speaking to reporters, Senator Nasreen Jalil said all provinces should have forensic laboratories similar to that of Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA), where autopsy report of the victim and DNA samples have been sent for assistance in the ongoing investigation of the case, Express News reported.

“We were expecting to see a ‘change’ in the health department here [in the province],” she said taking a jibe at Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the ruling party in K-P that claims bringing 'change' and building a 'Naya [new] Pakistan'.

She said all institutions should work in coordination with each other, adding that there was a need to improve the overall ‘system’.



The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) senator also urged the Punjab government to send the reports of forensic test in the Mardan rape and murder case without using any delaying tactics.

The minor girl had gone missing in Gujjar Ghari area of Mardan on January 13 and her body was found the following afternoon. Autopsy had confirmed that the girl was raped and then strangled.

A sharp increase has been witnessed in reporting of incident of such nature ever since the brutal rape and murder of eight-year-old Zainab in Kasur district of Punjab that shook the collective conscience of the nation earlier this month.