Daily Times

PESHAWAR: Additional Advocate General (AAG) Kaiser Shah, on Thursday informed the two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) that three teams had been formed to arrest prime accused Sajawal in the 2017 case of Sharifa Bibi of Dera Ismail Khan (DI Khan).

As the two-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, began hearing of the case, AAG Shah informed the court about the progress in the case. “Under the leadership of Superintendent of Police (SP) Ashfaq Khan, raids were conducted to hunt down Sajawal,” said Shah. “During the investigation, ten suspects were arrested,” he added.

Justice Afridi ordered quick arrest of the accused. The court remarked that Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sher Khan of DI Khan should personally appear in court once the accused is caught.

Last year on October 27, Sharifa Bibi was fetching water, around 80 kilometres west of Dera Ismail Khan, when a group of men accosted her, stripped her and dragged her along the ground before making her walk around naked for an hour, DI police said. Police took notice of the issue after media reports triggered outrage on social media.

According to police, the victim’s brother had a premarital affair with a woman. After learning about it, the village’s jirga council ruled that the woman’s family could retaliate by disrespecting his sister as punishment.

Published in Daily Times, February 23^rd 2018.