Lahore acid attack victim demands swift justice ‘like in Zainab murder case’

A victim of an acid attack protested outside an anti-terrorism court in Lahore on Wednesday, calling the attention of the chief justice and the army chief to her plight.

Recounting her tragic story to the media, Naila, the victim, said that her husband Arshad and her brother-in-law Mohammad Khan had allegedly thrown acid on her.

She demanded that her brother-in-law’s pre-arrest bail be revoked and he be put behind bars. Her husband has been in jail since the incident, which took place in July.

An FIR was registered against the accused on the complaint of Naila’s father on July 18 under Section 336-B of the Pakistan Penal Code, which pertains to punishment for causing permanent disfigurement, and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, which pertains to punishment for acts of terrorism.

According to the FIR, the incident occurred at around 7:30pm on July 18. Naila had been living with her family for the past eight to nine months after having had the last straw against the alleged abuse suffered at the hands of her in-laws.

Her father has mentioned in the report that he, along with Naila, his other daughter Nadia, and his son Fahad were walking home from Bagrian chowk when all of a sudden two motorcycles appeared and stopped behind them.

On one motorcycle, Arshad and his relative Bilal were seated, while on the other motorcycle Naila’s brother-in-law Mohammad Khan and a man identified as Mustafa were seated.

Arshad and his brother Mohammad Khan got down from their respective motorcycles, while their fellow passengers remained seated and kept the engines running. Mohammad Khan reportedly grabbed Naila while Arshad threw acid on her face from a bottle in his hand, according to the account described in the report.

All four men are said to have fled the scene moments after. The report observes that Naila’s siblings Nadia and Fahad were eyewitnesses to the crime. Naila was rushed to Jinnah hospital in a rickshaw.

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Naila claims her in-laws had started to issue threats to her family ever since they took her away to live with them. While talking to the media today, the victim expressed concern that her family was still receiving threats from the accused.

“My husband and my brother-in-law have ruined my life,” said Naila, who has two young sons from her marriage of nine years to Arshad. “My eyes have been completely destroyed,” she added.

The victim has demanded that swift justice be provided to her “as was provided in the Zainab murder case”.

An anti-terrorism court had convened today for the hearing of her case, but the defendant’s counsel was not present due to which the hearing was postponed until further notice.

Source: Dawn News