Prime accused in maid murder case denied bail

Pir Syed Asad Shah, his facilitator, Imtiaz Merasi, were produced before the ATC

KARACHI:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has denied bail to one of the two prime accused in the case of tragic death of a minor maid working at the Haveli of Pir Syed Asad Shah in Khairpur district.

The accused, Hina Shah, wife of Pir Syed Asad Shah, was denied bail by an SHC bench comprising Justice Mahmood A Khan and Justice Zulfiqar Ali Sangi. The court noted that she had “misused” her earlier protective bail, which she had secured on Aug 17 from the SHC Sukkur bench. T

he tragic incident occurred on Aug 14 when 10-year-old Fatima Phuriro, a minor maid, passed away at Shah’s residence. Initially, the family was informed that she had died due to a chronic illness. However, allegations of torture and possibly of rape emerged from other maids working at the Haveli.

A video showing the girl in extreme pain was shared on social media. On Aug 17, the Khairpur police registered an FIR under sections 302 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) based on the complaint of the victim’s mother, Shabnum Phuriro.

Shah and some alleged facilitators, including a police officer and a health practitioner, were arrested. The local court subsequently ordered the exhumation of the girl’s body, which revealed injuries and suggested sexual assault.

The police later expanded the charges to include sections 370, 374, 328-A, 506, 171, 311, 376(3), and 377 of the PPC, as well as Sections 6/7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) and 3 and 14 of the Sindh Prohibition of Employment of Children Act, 2017.

Meanwhile, Pir Syed Asad Shah and his alleged facilitator, Imtiaz Merasi, were produced before the AntiTerrorism Court in Khairpur on Thursday. The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), which has taken over the case, requested a fourweek remand.

However, the court granted only five days of physical custody to the department.