PESHAWAR: Police presented the alleged killer of Alisha, a transgender, to media and believed that her dying statement directly charging him made it a strong case against the suspect.

Alisha, a transgender and also an activist, was allegedly shot dead by her partner Fazal Gujjar on May 22. Within a week of the incident, Fazal Gujjar, who was directly charged by Alisha in her dying declaration to the police, was arrested on May 28 (Saturday night).

Police did their job but whether the transgender family and Trans-action Alliance, of which Alisha was also a member, would hire a competent private lawyer or leave it to the public prosecutor would decide the future of this case, legal experts opine.

Police, however, believed that Alisha’s case was strong since she had charged the alleged killer herself before breathing her last.

Suspect presented before media, refuses to answer questions of journalists

A handcuffed skinny youth in his late 20s, hardly five feet in height, wearing black Shalwar-Qameez, was presented to media at a press conference held at police lines on Sunday morning where SSP Operation Abbas Majeed Marwat, SP Faqirbabad Waseem Khalil and other officials were present. Mr Marwat shared details of the case with the media.

His face was covered and when it was uncovered to show him to the media, Fazal Gujjar did not answer any of the questions of media.

“The motive behind killing is a quarrel between Alisha and Fazal during a function on May 17. The alleged killer killed her with an eight-round 30 bore pistol to take revenge,” said Mr Marwat.

However, officials, who did not want to be named, said that the victim and alleged killer were in a relation. The alleged killer was forcing the victim (Alisha) to record an objectionable video which she refused, leading to a fight that proved fatal for the transgender, sources said.

Police spurred into action after hype was created in national and international media over the killing of the transgender and arrested alleged killer within a short span of one week of the offence.

A special team, tasked to track the absconding alleged killer of the transgender within 24 hours, arrested him in less than 12 hours, police claimed.

“After media highlighted the case of killing of Alisha, we tasked a special team, which tracked the alleged killer down. He was arrested from Qazi Kallay on Saturday night,” said Mr Marwat.

Police had registered an FIR under Section 302/34 of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). Fazal was directly charged by Alisha when she was brought in critical condition with severe injuries to Lady Reading Hospital. She succumbed to her injuries after two days.

The Trans-gender Alliance, a forum of civil society and transgender for creating awareness about rights of transgender, raised its voice against the incident. Later when Alisha died, her transgender family protested and out her body outside Faqirbabad police station, forcing police to make serious efforts for arrest of the alleged killer.

Mr Marwat said that Alisha’s murder was the first reported case of killing of a transgender that year. Police had been receiving complaints of harassments and violence against transgender, he said, adding that the suspects were arrested. Farzana, a guru heading the transgender’s alliance in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said that it was an emotional moment for her to see the alleged killer of Alisha.

She said that she was satisfied as it was perhaps for the first time that police cooperated with them and exposed a killer of a transgender before the public.

“I wish he gets punished and hanged for what he did,” said Farzana. She added that she would fight legal battle in court for Alisha, who was like a family to her.

Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2016