ISLAMABAD: The case of an abused childmaid took another turn on Tuesday after a local court relying on the affidavits submitted by her parents and a paternal aunt granted pre-arrest bail to the spouse of the additional district and sessions judge (ADSJ).

ADSJ Raja Asif Mehmood granted pre-arrest bail to Maheen Zafar, wife of his fellow judge ADSJ Raja Khurram Ali Khan, facing charges of torturing 10-year-old Tayyaba against Rs30,000 surety bonds.

In the affidavits, Tayyaba’s father Mohammad Azam, mother Nusrat Bibi and aunt Pathani Bibi stated that the police had registered a baseless case against ADSJ Raja Khurram Ali Khan and his wife Maheen Zafar.

The text of three affidavits submitted to the court on Monday was the same.

“The case in question is inaccurate and was registered on the basis of baseless allegations. I personally investigated the matter. I reached a settlement with Raja Khurram Ali Khan and his wife Maheen Zafar with my free will and hence forgiving them unconditionally,” said each of the three affidavits.

“I have no objection if the court would accept the bail plea of Raja Khurram Ali Khan and his wife.”

As per the affidavits, the parents of the housemaid neither wanted any legal proceedings against the ADSJ and his wife nor were interested in prosecution of the case.

It, however, said they reserved the rights for taking legal action against those responsible for misreporting.

Since there is no legislation in Islamabad regarding child protection, the affidavits of the parents and guardian superseded the statement of the child which would benefit the accused.

Had the case been registered anywhere in Punjab, the situation would be different, said Ali Abid Naqvi, a district officer Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB), Punjab.

There is the “Destitute and Neglected Child Act 2004” in Punjab to counter violence against children. Under the law, assaulting or hurting physically or mentally is a cognizable offence which may result in three years’ imprisonment and Rs50,000 fine.

According to Mr Naqvi, under the Act, the CPWB can raid a house to recover the abused child, take them in custody and lodge an FIR with the police as a complainant. He said in case a victim child accused someone, the bureau would not entertain the contradictory statements of their parents or guardians.

It may be an irony that the federal capital lacks such legislation. Yousuf Shah, the director for National Centre for Protection of Children (NCPC), said a proposed law for the protection of children had been under consideration for several months.

The NCPC, with around 15 staff members, cannot cover the entire federal capital. This is the reason despite receiving information related to the alleged torture on the housemaid the NCPC and police failed to recover the child the same day.

The information about the alleged torture on the housemaid by the family of the ADSJ appeared in the social media on December 28.

However, the FIR was registered after a delay of 24 hours with the Industrial Area police as the police could not recover the girl from the residence of the judge.

After the police recovered the housemaid, she at the very outset exonerated the judge and his wife and said she got injured after falling from the stairs. The medico-legal officer of Pakistan Institute of Medical Science (Pims), Dr Naseer, also cleared the judge and his wife from the torture charges and opined that the injuries were caused due to her sudden falling.

However, when the housemaid was produced before Assistant Commissioner Nisha Ishtiaq for recording her statement, the girl said she had been tortured and abused by the ADSJ and his spouse.

The police then registered a case against ADSJ Khan and his wife under various sections of the Pakistan Penal Code, including section 337 (injuring), 342 (illegal confinement) and 506 (intimidation). All the offences are bailable and also compoundable.

Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Mohammad Anwar Khan Kasi ordered an inquiry into the matter and the IHC registrar, after conducting the probe, submitted the report to him. However, the findings of the inquiry have not been made public.

ADSJ Raja Asif Mehmood in the evening handed over the custody of Tayyaba to her parents who left for their native village.

Soon after the incident, the father of the girl had told the media, “I heard someone offering me Rs50,000 if I agree to settle the case.” However, he had said he only wanted justice for his child.

Published in Dawn January 4th, 2017