Sent to jail: Family confesses to burying daughter inside house

Court sends four accused on remand for four days.

SUKKUR:

A woman was killed by four members of her family and was later buried in her house in Farash Morr village in Sukkur.

On Sunday morning, a neighbour informed the police that Imdad Ali Shaikh, his son Raza Muhammad and nephew Gul Muhammad beat Arzana and killed her. The police raided the house and arrested Imdad, his wife Rasheeda, daughter-in-law Shamul, and Gul Muhammad. Raza Muhammad is on the run. The family confessed to the crime and showed the place where they had buried Arzana.

The Abad police lodged a case against the four people arrested and Raza Muhammad, on the complaint of Arzana’s sister Sakina. She told the police that Arzana was married to Haji Mubarak five years ago and she had a son with him. Three years ago, her husband died and she came to live with her parents.

Sakina said their father is a greedy man, who wanted to marry Arzana off to an old man for money. When Arzana refused, the men in the house started beating her and eventually killed her.

On Monday, the first civil judge and judicial magistrate of Sukkur, Ghous Ali Shah, sent the four accused on a four-day remand.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Imdad repeatedly denied that he was trying to sell his daughter for money. He explained that, “she was a kari” or had besmirched the family honour and that is why Raza Muhammad killed her. His wife, Rasheeda, also corroborated this.

She claimed that Arzana was having an affair with someone in the village and that her stepson killed her for “ghairat” [honour].

The investigating officer said that the court has yet to appoint a magistrate to exhume Arzana’s body. He said it is likely to take a day or two.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 14^th, 2011.