KARACHI, Jan 19: The Federal Shariat Court reduced the jail term of a minor convicted of rape and ordered his release forthwith on Thursday.

Ghulam Murtaza was charged with raping a seven-year-old girl at Tando Mohammad Khan in September 1998 and was tried by a sessions court at Hyderabad.

According to the findings of the trial court, he was 12 years old at the time of commission of offence. However, he was tried under Section 10 (3) of the Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, a provision dealing with adult rapists, and sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment.

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