PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court has acquitted a juvenile convict and set aside sentence of life imprisonment awarded to him for the honour-related murder of his teenage sister.

A bench consisting of Justice Mohammad Ijaz Khan and Justice Salahud Din accepted an appeal of the convict as he was pardoned by his parents, who were legal heirs of the deceased teenage girl.

The bench observed that they were satisfied that the parties had affected the compromise in their best interest, which was without any pressure, force, coercion or under influence.

The appellant was charged in an FIR registered at Charbagh police station in Swat on Feb 14, 2023, under section 302 (intentional murder) and 311 (Fasad Fil Arz or mischief on earth) of Pakistan Penal Code.

Parents of slain teenage girl pardon their son

A child protection/juvenile court, Swat, had convicted the appellant on May 15, 2024, under section 302 PPC and sentenced him to life imprisonment and also fined him Rs1 million, which had to be paid to legal heirs of his deceased sister.

However, the trial court had not invoked section 311 PPC as the legal heirs (parents) had not waived their right of Qisas at that time. Due to the same reason, the trial court had observed that provision of section 311 PPC was not attracted.

The high court bench observed that section 302 was compoundable offence, whereas section 311 PPC, which was not compoundable, was not applicable to the case in hand, therefore the instant appeal was allowed on the basis of compromise.

Advocate Saeed Khan appeared for the appellant and stated that though the deceased woman was married yet she was already divorced by her husband, therefore, only her parents were her legal heirs.

Father and mother of the deceased appeared before the bench and stated that they had pardoned their son (appellant) in the name of Almighty Allah by waving off their right of Qisas and Diyat. They stated that they had no objection to the acquittal of their son.

The complainant in the instant case was an additional SHO of Charbagh police station, Shamsul Haq, who had stated that they had received information about murder of a woman. He stated when they reached the spot, they found body of a woman lying in a cot.

The complainant stated that on getting information he came to know that the deceased woman, who was around 17, had left her home with a man named Salman around two years ago and they had contracted Nikah.

He stated that a criminal case was registered against Salman, who was arrested whereas the deceased woman was at that time sent to a shelter home. Subsequently, she was released from the shelter home and started living with her parents and was also divorced by her husband.

He claimed that the appellant had killed his sister on pretext of honour by slitting her throat with a knife-like sharp edged cutter.

The trial court in its judgement had observed that elopement of a female with a stranger male or leaving house of parents or brothers by a female was considered shame and dishonour in that part of the country.

“It is generally observed that females are done to death on the pretext on the pretext or in the name of honour on the sole ground of elopement or desertion with a male.”

The court had observed that since the deceased had admittedly eloped with Salman, therefore her death inside dwelling house of the accused in the name or on the pretext of honour was also believable in circumstances.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2025