HARIPUR: A court has sentenced a man after convicting him of raping a mentally challenged minor girl to a total of 32 years in prison.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Javed Yousuf, who prosecuted the case before the gender-based violence (GBV) court on behalf of the rape victim, told reporters that on July 8, 2020, the nine-year-old girl was found bleeding and crying outside her house in Mohallah Darband, Khalabat Township, after remaining missing for some time.
The girl told her parents about the incident. With the help of CCTV footage, neighbours identified a man, Habibur Rehman alias Qara, as the suspected rapist.
The Khalabat Township police arrested him after registering a case under Section 376 of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 53 of the KP Child Protection and Welfare Act.
The police’s investigation wing later submitted a charge sheet against the suspect before the additional sessions judge-VI, who also led the GBV court.
After a six-year trial, GBV court judge Shah Faisal sentenced the convict to rigorous imprisonment for 25 years and fined him Rs200,000 for rape.
He was also convicted under Section 53 of the Child Protection Act and sentenced to seven years in prison, with an additional fine of Rs100,000.
The court extended the benefit of Section 382-B of the Code of Criminal Procedure to the convict, declaring both sentences will run concurrently.
Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2026
