Attempt to resolve family feud goes awry

Dispute over marriage proposal claims three lives

PAKPATTAN:

Three people died here over a dispute concerning a marriage proposal.

The deceased belonged to the same clan. What led to the violence was a dispute over a marriage proposal of one Ghulam Qadir for Erum Shahzadi.

One of the three people who died was Erum’s father, Ghulam Murtaza. The two other victims were the father and brother of Ghulam Qadir.

All three victims died on the spot. The incident took place in the 99D area of the jurisdiction of Dal Waryam police station. Ironically, the gunfight broke out during a panchayat which was meant to negotiate peace between the two groups of the same clan.

A large contingent of police arrived at the scene when the incident was reported to them.

Dal Waryam Police arrested five suspects and registered a case against Abrar Hussain and 12 others on a complaint filed by Hamid's son.

In a similar incident of rivalry between two families over a love marriage recently, a man had allegedly killed his two daughters and their four children by setting their house ablaze because one of the women married against his wishes. The incident had happened in Muzaffargargh district. Sisters Fauzia Bibi and Khurshid Mai had shared a home in Pir Jahanian village of Muzaffargargh. Mai's husband had also died in the blaze.

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Bibi had married Mehboob Ahmad about 18 months ago against her father's will. Bibi's husband Ahmad told police he was not at home at the time of the fire and had found the house ablaze when he returned from work early in the morning.

Ahmad said his four-month-old son had died, along with Mai's three children aged two, six and 13.

In a yet more horrific incident, a feud between two families spanning over 17 years in Muridke had claimed over two-dozen lives.

The last round of violence between the two families took place earlier this year, claiming six lives. The Kasab and Butt groups had clashed for the first time in 2004.

Three members of the Kasab group were killed by members of the Butt group in Lahore over an exchange of harsh words over a cable issue. Three years later, the Kasab group got an opportunity to avenge the casualties, killing eight members of the Butt group.

The enmity continues to intensify over time, though dignitaries of the area and the police repeatedly tried to persuade the rival groups to settle the matter. In 2017, the Kasab group killed five members of the Butt group, including children. Only two members of the Butt family survived the attack.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 9^th, 2021.