Jirga in Laki Marwat gives Feb 28 deadline to arrest Asma's killers

Published February 6, 2018
The jirga members say they will block the Indus Highway in protest if the main suspect is not apprehended. —photo by author
The jirga members say they will block the Indus Highway in protest if the main suspect is not apprehended. —photo by author
The jirga members say they will block the Indus Highway in protest if the main suspect is not apprehended. —photo by author
The jirga members say they will block the Indus Highway in protest if the main suspect is not apprehended. —photo by author

The Marwat tribe on Monday held a grand jirga in Laki Marwat to decide the future course of action in their struggle to seek justice for the murder of Asma Rani, DawnNews reported.

The jirga members gave the government a deadline of February 28 to arrest the main suspect, after which they said they will block the Indus Highway in protest.

Asma Rani, a third-year medical student, was shot dead in Kohat reportedly for refusing a marriage proposal.

According to police, Asma had been visiting her family in Kohat during a session break when the prime accused, Mujahid Afridi, and his accomplice, Sajid, reportedly opened fire on her, fleeing the crime scene soon after.

The victim had received three bullets and was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she had identified Mujahid as the assailant before succumbing to her injuries on Sunday.

The jirga on Monday was attended by tribe’s elders and scores of people who held the government responsible for the delay in dispensing of justice.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police had confirmed that Afridi had successfully managed to flee to Saudi Arabia from Benazir Bhutto Airport Islamabad on an Umrah visa right after the murder.

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