Zainab murder case: Punjab IG fails to appear before LHC despite summon
The hearing of Zainab murder case was headed by Chief Justice Mansoor Ali Shah.
LAHORE (Dunya News) - Punjab Inspector General Captain (retd) Arif Nawaz Khan failed to appear in Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday despite the court’s summon.
The hearing of Zainab murder case was held by LHC Chief Justice Mansoor Ali Shah after a 36-hour deadline to arrest the culprit in Zainab murder case ended.
The judge expressed resentment over the IG’s absence and asked: “Why the IG did not appear before the court despite issuance of summon?”
He maintained that Zainab’s murder could have been avoided if the police had taken action in 2015 when the first case of serial killer was reported. LHC CJ directed to submit the complete record of the case till January 17.
Meanwhile, a third CCTV footage has surfaced which shows the seven-year-old girl running toward the suspect after he signaled her in his direction.
It is quite evident from the footage that the man is well-known to Zainab.
Criminal’s sketch released
Joint Investigation Team (JIT) in the case issued a fresh sketch of the wanted perpetrator on Sunday while more pictures of the criminal have been attained using CCTV footages.
Grieving parents of the nimor girl are unable to identify the man through the pictures while teams have begun to collect DNA samples of men residing in two kilometres of the area.
Know also: Committee to recommend forwarding sexual assault cases to ATCs
.jpg)
The sketch released by JIT on Sunday in Zainab murder case
Punjab Inspector General (IG) presided over a meeting in Kasur Police Lines and reviewed progress in the case.
On the other hand, members of the JIT concerned convened meetings in Kasur DPO House with multiple families dealing with similar cases and it was revealed that the culprit was wanted in at least eight such cases.
Brutal murder
A seven-year-old minor girl named Zainab went missing nearly ten days ago and her body was found in a heap of trash in Kasur last week. She was told to have been raped and murdered and the news sparked protests in mutltiple cities with the locals demanding the law enforcers and the government to bring the perpetrator to justice.
At least five days into the tragedy, bereaved parents of late Zainab who returned to Pakistan from Saudi Arabia, postponing Umrah, are awaiting arrest of the murderer.
Members of the civil society have recorded protests in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi among other cities. Locals clashed with police in Kasur last week after the national media covered the story.
The culprit remains at large over five days after the incident surfaced.
Medical report
According to the medical reports, the seven-year-old died after the rapist slit her wrists and choked her to death. There was ample evidence of assault and rape on the little girl’s body.
Zainab had marks of torture on nose, neck, and other parts of the body – according to the autopsy. The samples collected from her clothes and body were sent to forensic laboratory.
CM Shehbaz, other lawmakers visits
Lawmakers both belonging to provincial as well as federal governments paid visits to the grieving parents and arrived in Kasur following relentless reportage over the incident by the national media.
Senate opposition leader Aitzaz Ahsan, Punjab chief minister (CM) Shehbaz Sharif who has been widely criticised by the opposition and certain section of the society for inefficient governance were among the visitors.
Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi expressed condolences to the family over the incident.
