Punjab

Three sentenced to death in rape, murder case

Fine of Rs210,000 has been imposed on each of the three accused which will be paid to the heirs of the deceased

Saqib Bashir April 19, 2022

Say removing moratorium on death penalty, imposition of NAP a knee-jerk reaction. PHOTO: EXPRESS

ISLAMABAD:

A local court in Islamabad awarded two counts of death sentence to three suspects for raping and brutally murdering an 11-year-old girl in an area known as Bari Imam in the federal capital.

Additional Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar of the Gender-Based Violence Court delivered the 23-page judgment in the case - which started in December 2020 - a year and a half later.

According to the court’s verdict, suspects Syed Hamad Naqvi, Shah Sehwar and Muhammad Khurshid were sentenced to death on two counts and one-year imprisonment each on the charge of murder and rape of little girl Aqsa Bibi. A fine of Rs210,000 has been imposed on each of the three accused which will be paid to the heirs of the deceased.

One year of imprisonment was awarded to each of the suspects on conviction for stealing jewelry. Another year each was awarded upon the recovery of stolen goods. All the sentences will run concurrently.

Public Prosecutor Rana Hassan Abbas pursued the case on behalf of the state, while Jan Muhammad Khan Advocate and Kashif Zaman Afridi Advocate made up the complainant's counsel.

The court wrote in the verdict that an 11-year-old girl was killed after being raped in Bari Imam area of Islamabad in September 2020. Initially, the suspects were not nominated in the FIR, but the complainant nominated the three suspects in the case after witnessing Irfan Karim, who saw the suspects leaving the house where the murder took place, came forward.

Witness Irfan Karim first stated everything in a statement recorded before the police but later deviated from his statement. However, when questioned by the public prosecutor, he replied to some facts. A dupatta (headscarf) was presented by the prosecution on which the DNA was matched with accused Muhammad Khurshid. The medical report proved rape. The suspect was last seen by the witness leaving the house.

The post-mortem report, recovery memo and other evidence proved the allegations against the three suspects. Jewelry theft has also been proven. The Islamabad High Court had also directed that the case be disposed of within two months.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 19^th, 2022.