Love marriage: Man’s family attacked by wife’s angry brothers

The woman’s family felt insulted when she refused to go back to them.

FAISALABAD:

Some family members of a girl, who had married for love, on Tuesday shot her husband’s brother dead and set fire to their house, injuring four of his family members. 

Muhammad Amir*, a resident of Mamber village, told the media that Muhammad Ashraf had asked his cousin Perveen Jalal’s father for her hand in marriage but he had refused. He said last month, Jalal and Ashraf eloped and got married in Chichawatni against Jalal’s parents’ wishes.

Amir said a panchayat had been arranged and Jalal’s family had demanded that she be sent back to them, but she refused to return to her parents because she was scared they would kill her. He said Jalal’s parents took that as an insult. On Tuesday, her brothers and other family members attacked Ashraf’s house while his family was asleep. They shot at the people sleeping in the house and sprinkled petrol all over the place and set it alight.

Amir said that Ashraf’s brother received serious bullet injuries and died on the spot. Ashraf’s mother, his sister, brother and a cousin sustained serious burn injuries and were taken to the Toba Tek Singh District Headquarters Hospital. He said Ashraf and Jalal were not in the house and had escaped several days ago after Jalal’s brothers threatened them with dire consequences.

A heavy police contingent reached the scene and took the body for a post mortem.

Dr Muhammad Anwar, on duty at the Emergency Ward, said, “The injured are being provided intensive care but the mother’s condition seems precarious.”

Kamalia Saddar Station House Officer Rana Muhammad Afzal said Jalal’s brothers had fled the scene. He said they were looking for them and hoped that they would be arrested soon.

*Names have been changed to protect identity

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6^th, 2014.