‘Honour’ killing: Autopsy confirms death from brick blows

Body exhumed by police on receiving complaints against family.

KHANEWAL:

A post mortem examination of a 19-year-old girl allegedly killed by her brother on Wednesday has confirmed multiple wounds consistent with brick blows to have been the cause of death.

Kuhna police said they suspected that Khalid, brother of deceased Saima Bibi, had fled to Lahore where he was employed at a factory. They said they were coordinating with Lahore police to track him down and bring him back to Khanewal.

The police on Thursday exhumed Saima Bibi’s body from a graveyard in her native village Nandpur on receiving a tip-off that she was killed over an alleged relationship with a boy.

SHO Abdul Kareem said that during interrogation uncles of the deceased had accused Khalid of the murder. He quoted Zulfiqar Mapuchar and Iqbal, two unclues of the deceased, as saying that Saima had been beaten to death after Khalid found her with a man in a park near their house. They said Saima was visiting their house in Chan Shah area of Khanewal to attend the wedding of Zulfiqar’s daughter. The wedding was postponed after her death.

The family had earlier stated that the girl died on falling from the roof of the  house in Chan Shah.

Talking to The Express Tribune Zulfiqar Mapuchar said when the deceased was seen at the park and they had brought her back to his house.

He said Khalid had taken her to a separate room, saying that he wanted to talk to her in private.

He said some moments later they heard the girl’s screams from the room. “She had died by the time I and rest of the family rushed to the room,” he added.

Khalid had fled following the killing.

The FIR names Aziza Bibi, grandmother of the deceased, as a complainant.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 30^th, 2012.