A silver lining

Verdict in the Tayyaba torture case is a glimmer of hope for the country’s judicial system

KARACHI: The verdict in the Tayyaba torture case handed over by the Islamabad High Court is a glimmer of hope for the country’s judicial system. On Monday June 11^th, the judge not only dismissed the appeals filed by the couple who were found to be guilty of torturing their juvenile housemaid but also increased their fine and jail term.

Considering that less than a week ago another judge had acquitted the accused in Khadija Siddiqui’s case — an accused who had previously found to be guilty owing to the forensic evidence — the decision taken by the IHC judge helps to rebuild trust in Pakistan’s judiciary.

No one, from activists to analysts, had expected the couple — a suspended additional district and sessions judge, Raja Khurram Ali Khan, and his wife Maheen Zafar — to have been arrested, especially considering their influence and power that has often been used by influential people like them to have the court decision made in their favour.

Perhaps this case is a new silver lining for Pakistan that will see the judiciary be free from the shackles of the powerful in the country and truly impart justice.

Abdul Basit

Published in The Express Tribune, June 12^th, 2018.

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