IHC denies bail to man accused of burning wife alive

Upholds lower court's verdict in domestic violence case after hearing victim's dying declaration

ISLAMBAD:

The Islamabad High Court rejected on Tuesday the post-arrest bail plea filed by Adil Mehmood, who is accused of burning his wife alive in the Kirpa area of the federal capital.

A single-member bench, headed by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, heard Mehmood's plea during which the court was presented with the victim, Sania Bibi's dying declation.

Sania, a mother of three, accused her husband Mehmood and his father Mustab Hussain of setting her on fire after a heated argument. Sania's testimony was recorded while she was under treatment at PIMS Hospital Islamabad. Based on the dying declaration, Sania and her husband were in the middle of an argument when Mehmood dragged her inside the house and Hussain doused her with petrol. The two set her ablaze.

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According to Sania's testimony, she kept screaming for help but none came. It was two hours later that she recieved medical attention. Sania further accused Mehmood and Hussain of pressuring her to lie and state that she was injured in a gas cylinder explosion while on the way to the hospital.

Her jewellry was taken at the hospital and her attendants - the perpetrators - denied her water till a doctor interved. Besides, Mehmood and Hussain warned her against informing her brothers or face further harm, testified Sania, adding that the safety of her children was also threatened.

A case was lodged at Kirpa Police Station on June 9, 2025, after Sania's statement was recorded.

Both Mehmood and Hussain were taken to Adiala Jail, where they remain incarcerated. Sania succumbed to her injuries after nearly a month of treatment at PIMS Hospital.

IHC dismissed the post-arrest bail plea filed by Mehmood through his counsel, upholding the decision of the district and sessions court, which had earlier denied him bail.