KARACHI: Community members and relatives of a teenage domestic help, whose body was found hanging with a ceiling fan in a Defence Housing Authority house under controversial circumstances, on Sunday staged a rally and blamed the police for not taking the murder seriously.

The protesters, including a large number of women, first gathered in Chanesar Goth, from where they took out a rally and reached outside the Sindh Governor House.

Carrying portraits of the deceased Paria alias Maria, they demanded fair and impartial investigation to bring killers to justice.

The police blocked the road for vehicular traffic and persuaded the protesters to shift their demonstration outside the Karachi Press Club.

Later, Darakshan DSP Manisha held talks with them and assured them of justice.

The protesters told the media that their girl could not commit suicide. They alleged that her clothes contained dust while there were injuries on the back of the head.

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They termed it a murder and alleged that the investigators were not taking the case seriously.

Taking notice of their protest, Home Minister Ziaul Hasan Lanjar sought a detailed report about the incident.

Meanwhile, a police spokesperson said in a statement that a murder case was registered on the complaint of the victim’s father. He said that three suspects were named in the FIR and one of them got bail before arrest. “DNA and final [autopsy] reports are still awaited but the police are investigating the case from different angles,” said the spokesperson.

DIG-South Syed Asad Raza told Dawn that the main suspect had joined investigation after obtaining pre-arrest bail while two others had been arrested.

He said that investigators had held a detailed meeting with Police Surgeon Summaiya Syed “to further ascertain facts and strengthen the case”.

“Furthermore, DNA samples of all the suspects in the house have been taken for cross-matching,” he added.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2024