Rapist, murderer of Kasur's 7-year-old Zainab sentenced to death
The verdict was announced by an anti-terrorism court in Lahore.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – An anti-terrorism court (ATC) has handed over four counts of death penalty to accused Imran Ali in seven-year-old Zainab’s rape and murder case today (Saturday).
The verdict was announced by ATC judge Sajjad Ahmed at Kot Lakhpat Jail.
Also Read: Zainab’s mother demands to stone suspect to death
Imran was handed four separate death sentences after being convicted of the rape and murder of Zainab, as well as terrorism charges, prosecutor general of Punjab province Ihtesham Qadir said after a special anti-terrorism court passed its judgement.
The prosecutors said he received further life imprisonment and fines totalling 3.2 million rupees ($30,000) for additional charges of hiding his victim s body. The suspect can file an appeal against the decision within 15 days, he added.
One million rupees of the fine would be given in compensation to Zainab s family, public prosecutor Abdul Rauf Wattoo said.
It is the first time in Pakistan’s history that a trial was completed in four days with 13-hour-long proceedings daily.
Zainab murder case
Seven-year-old Zainab went missing on January 4 on her way back to home from maternal aunt’s house. On January 8, her body was found in a garbage dump in the city of Kasur.
Zainab had marks of torture on nose, neck, and other parts of the body and was raped before murder, revealed medical report.
The guardians complained upon return from Umrah that the police did not cooperate with the relatives, who were looking for the missing minor.
On January 10, protest broke out in the metropolis against the brutal murder of Zainab after rape and demanded to hang the culprit in public. Police officers resorted to aerial firing when violent protesters tried to storm commissioner office, killing two people and injuring three others. The wounded were shifted to the hospital for medical assistance.
Countless CCTV footages of the surrounding areas were monitored and eventually released where the 7-year-old girl is seeing walking with the murderer.
CJP takes suo moto notice
On January 10, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar took suo motu notice of the case, directing to properly investigate it. He maintained that Kasur incident is an embarrassment for the entire country as Zainab was their daughter too.
He insisted that lawyers may stage protest against the brutal killing but should not boycott court proceedings as the litigants will suffer from this.
On February 10, CJP disposed of the suo moto notice after challan against Imran was submitted in the court. The apex court also expressed satisfaction on the performance of police.
Imran’s detention
DNA samples of more than 1150 people were taken among which suspect Imran was also included, however, he left the place by tricking policemen of heart pain.
He was rearrested on January 20 in Kasur after his DNA sample matched with that collected from the body of the victim.
On January 22, accused’s family was taken into custody by rangers for investigation while Punjab CM along with Zainab’s parents held press conference, lauding the performance of police department for nabbing the suspect.
Senior journalist’s revelations
Senior journalist Dr Shahid on January 25, said that arrested suspect was backed by a federal minister and a prominent personality. He alleged that the rapist and murderer was a member of an international pornography ring. He further stated that the suspect had 37 foreign currency bank accounts.
However, in a report submitted to the Punjab cabinet’s sub-committee, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rejected Masood’s claims and concluded that Imran Alihas no bank account registered on his name.
Imran’s indictment
On February 12, Imran Ali was indicted in seven-year-old Zainab’s murder case during hearing at the jail. The accused was presented before the judicial bench in Kot Lakhpat jail during which, he was indicted for raping and killing a Kasur girl.
Imran‘s lawyer Mehar Shakeel Multani stood down from the case following his confession, saying that his conscience doesn’t permit him to represent a criminal.
“Don’t deserve pardon”
Imran Ali said that he had subjected the murdered minor girl to brutality and that he does not deserve to be pardoned.
In his confessional statement, Imran Ali said that he does not need any legal assistance and that the bigger the punishment for what he has done the less it is.
A total of 1,764 cases of child abuse were reported across Pakistan in the first six months of 2017, according to Sahil, an organization that works on child protection. In 2016, the total number of reported child abuse cases was 4,139, or around 11 new cases reported per day.
