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Today's Paper | December 22, 2024

Published 23 Apr, 2018 08:09pm

Christian woman attacked with acid for refusing marriage proposal dies in Lahore

A Christian woman, who was hospitalised with 90 per cent burns in a Lahore hospital after she came under an acid attack last week for reportedly turning down a Muslim man's marriage proposal, succumbed to her wounds on Monday after putting up a five-day long fight for life.

According to the deceased girl's father, Yaqub Masih, a man named Rizwan threw acid on his daughter Asima, 24, on April 18.

Yaqub, a labourer of Pakpura area in Sialkot, said her daughter had refused to marry Rizwan because of the difference of religion. He said according to the local doctors, 90pc body of Asima was burnt in the acid attack.

She had to be shifted to the Mayo Hospital in Lahore due to her life-threatening injuries. There is no burn unit at the Government Allama Iqbal Memorial Teaching Hospital in Sialkot.

Yaqub said instead of registering the acid throwing case, the Sialkot Civil Line police had changed the nature of the crime in the first information report, stating she was set ablaze by the accused.

He had alleged that police exploited them because of their illiteracy, and got their thumb impressions on blank papers.

The family with other local Christians had protested against the police for changing the nature of the offence in the FIR.

The family and other Christians had demanded that Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Inspector General of Police Arif Nawaz take notice of the offence.

District Police Officer (DPO) Asad Sarfraz Khan had told reporters at the time that the police had included the acid-throwing clause in the case.

He said a department probe had also been ordered against the police officials for misleading the nature of the offense in the FIR.

The DPO had also informed the media that his department had managed to arrest Rizwan after the FIR was registered.

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