Karak rape case: Accused sent on five-day judicial remand

Investigation team still awaiting DNA results.

PESHAWAR:

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) Peshawar issued a five-day judicial remand for a proclaimed offender in the Karak rape case on Friday.

Nasibullah, who is serving in Air Defence in the Pakistan Army, was on the run since he was nominated in an FIR registered by the mother of rape victim, Saima*, on August 26, 2010, at Takht-e-Nusrati police station, Karak. He had surrendered himself to the police the day before.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Investigations Kohat Atiqullah Wazir told The Express Tribune that ATC-III Judge Anwar Hussain had issued orders for a judicial remand and sent to jail, to enable the police to investigate his involvement in the rape case.

Nasibullah had escaped from the area after the FIR and the investigation team had been trailing him, he added.

“We informed officers in his unit in Air Defence which is currently deployed in Attock and informed them that Nasibullah has been nominated in the rape case.” The officer handed over Nasibullah to the police after receiving a written request.

District and Session Judge Peshawar, Ziauddin Khattak, has started investigation of the alleged abduction of Saima’s newborn baby girl, Zeba, shortly after her birth on January 20 from the Hayatabad Medical Complex on instructions from Chief Justice Peshawar High Court Justice Dost Muhammad Khan.

She was returned to her mother after an 18-hour absence. Zeba was taken away by the chairwoman of the provincial commission for the status of women in violation of court orders and standard procedures.

Meanwhile, District and Session Judge Ziauddin Khattak has issued instructions to SSP Tahir Ayub to provide data on all the police officials assigned to provide security to Saima and her family.

SSP Ayub, while talking to The Express Tribune, said the police have not received any instruction from the court, but they would provide the information if required.

“We have not received any order in black and white.” We have been providing security to Saima and her family so police officials are deployed at her house and there is a police mobile to escort them, he added.

SSP Wazir said investigation into the case was almost complete and the team had taken blood samples from Saima and her daughter, but blood samples of the accused persons will be collected at the Armed Forces Institute Rawalpindi, right at the time of the DNA tests to dispel any doubts.

Saima was abducted and gang-raped in custody and had accused thirteen persons including three police officials of the crimes.

*name has been changed to protect identity

Published in The Express Tribune, January 28^th, 2012.