Shah Hussain's early release due to 'technical remissions': Punjab govt

Punjab Prisons Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan on Tuesday said Shah Hussain – convicted for stabbing Khadija Siddiqui – did not receive any relief in the form of legal remission from any government official.

Hussain availed "technical remissions" which are given for blood donations and good conduct as per the law and the Constitution, said the minister in a video statement released today.

Chohan further stated that the details of Hussain’s release had been made been public.

The minister's response came after Hussain’s release sparked outrage, with thousands on social media blaming Punjab authorities.

Siddiqui took to Twitter to question why she was not informed of the development and held Chohan "responsible for allowing early release” of her “attacker” on Monday.

PTI Maleeka Bukhari said the remission granted to Hussain was "not in keeping with the fundamental right to life of the victim.

She added that as a lawyer and a women parliamentarian, she will advise the provincial government "to suitably amend the prison rules so that equitable justice is meted out to women victims of heinous offences".

A law student, Shah Hussain, stabbed his class fellow, Khadija Siddiqui, 23 times in Lahore in May 2016.

In 2019, he was put behind bars after a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa reversed the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) earlier acquittal order.