Honour killing suspects sent to jail

All seven suspects admit guilt; confessions may be recorded under Section 164 of CrPC

RAWALPINDI:

A local court on Tuesday granted an additional four-day physical remand for the arrested rickshaw driver and sent two other suspects in the honour killing case of 17-year-old Sidra to Adiala Jail on a 14-day judicial remand.

Ms Sidra was murdered allegedly by her family members following the decision of an illegal jirga in Ziaul Haq Colony in Pirwadhai police limits.

Civil Judge Qamar Abbas Tarrar granted an additional four-day physical remand for rickshaw driver, Khayal Muhammad, ordering that he be presented again on Friday, August 1.

However, the court rejected the police request for further remand of the two other accused - gravedigger Rashid Mehmood and cemetery secretary Saifur Rehman - instead placing them on 14-day judicial remand and sending them to Adiala Jail. The suspects are scheduled to appear in court again on August 11, with investigators stating that their interrogation has been completed.

On Monday, during the exhumation of Ms Sidra's body, forensic samples were collected.

The following day, these samples were hand-delivered to the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) via a special dispatch. Given the gravity of the case, authorities have formally requested that the forensic analysis be expedited and the results returned on a priority basis.

In a related breakthrough, the investigation team recovered the large red loader rickshaw used to transport Sidra's body from her residence to the cemetery. The vehicle, found in a concealed parking location, was seized by police and formally impounded.

The court has also directed that a headstone bearing Ms Sidra's name be placed on her grave, and that her burial details be officially recorded in the cemetery register. Sources associated with the ongoing investigation claim that all seven suspects currently in custody have confessed to their involvement in the crime.