Family members booked for murdering young woman
An elderly man and his two sons have been booked for allegedly killing a young woman due to a forced marriage dispute.
The FIR has been registered at Kario Ganwar police station in Golarchi, Badin, district on Sunday on the state's complaint under sections 302, 311 and 34 of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).
The police have arrested and booked grandfather Adam Abro, father Ali Akbar Abro and uncle Alam Abro for slaying 23-year-old Fehmida Abro. The police claimed that the accused have confessed to murdering Fehmida for honour.
Earlier on Saturday the 80-year-old grandfather had surrendered to the police, claiming that he had killed Fehmida. However, the police suspected involvement of other family members as well in the crime.
According to Paras Memon, the in-charge of the Tarai police check post, the victim, 25-year-old Fehmida Abro, was brutally beaten before being stabbed. Fehmida had married a man of her choice last year and left her parents' house to live with him. However, the community elders intervened and dissolved the marriage. She was later forcibly remarried to one of her cousins and began living with him in Tando Muhammad Khan district a few months ago. Some days before her murder, she left her husband's home and returned to live with her parents in village Adam Abro.
The elderly grandfather allegedly stated that he was outraged by Fehmida's attempt to quit her family-arranged marriage.
Though the term remains misleading because there is no honour in killing a woman, the practice remains rampant in the province. Earlier on Monday, a man allegedly killed his wife in the name of honour, in a village in the Rustam area of Shikarpur district. The suspect, identified as Ramazan Atrani, accused the deceased, Muradi Atrani, of bringing him dishonour. Reportedly, the deceased's body was later buried without the proper burial rites. Muradi's family approached the police and complained about her killing, prompting an investigation. Meanwhile, Ramazan is absconding.
According to Sindh Women Lawyers Alliance Chairperson Shazia Nizamani 379 women had been killed in the name of honour in Sindh alone during 2024.
She has cited alarming statistics, revealing that the number of women affected by domestic violence, sexual harassment, and other abuses is much higher.
Nizamani has stressed the importance of implementing and enforcing laws designed to protect women. She believes that empowering women socially requires economic empowerment, alongside legal protections.