Woman dead, brother rescued from captivity

Police say siblings were subjected to extreme abuse in bid to seize ancestral land

CHAKWAL:

Neela police recovered on Thursday the body of a woman and her brother alive from the illegal occupation of their paternal cousin in the Ghagh village. The suspect subjected the victims to extreme abuse in an attempt to seize their ancestral agricultural land.

Acting on an anonymous letter, the police conducted a raid, searched the house and found the woman dead. Her brother was rescued but was too fearful to speak. A case has been registered.

The police said that the victims identified as Jabeen Bibi, 26, and Hassan Raza, 32, had been confined to an abandoned house for the past two years. When Neela Police raided the house, they discovered the sister's body lying on the floor of one room, and the brother was found in another room, terrified and unable to speak.

Police sources revealed that on February 1, an anonymous letter was received at Neela police station addressed to the SHO, written through the Pakistan Post. The letter was directed to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and reported that Jabeen Bibi and Hassan Raza, who owned millions of rupees in property, had been drugged by their cousin, rendering them semi-insane. Their father Chaudhry Zarmitaj died two years ago, while their mother several years ago.

The letter stated that the siblings had been locked in rooms, completely naked in the cold and that a woman from the village occasionally served them food through the window. The letter also claimed that the cousin, who wanted to seize their vast property, was responsible for their abuse. Sources added that the siblings owned around 700 to 800 acres of agricultural land and had no other heirs. They were not insane but had been drugged into a semi-mad state.

The writer of the letter also stated that they considered themselves partially guilty of the situation but were helpless and could only write, appealing for the siblings' rescue, medical treatment, and placement in a shelter home.

After receiving the letter, Neela SHO Sohaib Zafar launched an investigation. Upon confirming the truth of the letter, the police raided the house. The rooms were locked, but when they broke into one room, they found Jabeen Bibi's body on the floor with blue marks on her back. In another room, Hassan Raza was rescued. According to the police, Hassan Raza's mental state is unstable, and he is extremely frightened and unable to speak.

The autopsy report will determine the cause of Jabeen's death, but it is suspected that she died from cold and prolonged hunger. The police further said that Hassan would undergo a medical examination to assess his mental state and determine if he had been drugged.

Meanwhile, the police are conducting raids to arrest the cousins responsible for the abuse, and they are expected to be arrested soon.