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| November 26, 2005 | Saturday | Shawwal 23, 1426 |
Unwed mother asked to appear in SC on Dec 1
ISLAMABAD, Nov 25: The Supreme Court Friday ordered an unwed mother to appear before it to clear her elder sister’s claim that a former naib nazim of Okara had fathered her child. The unwed mother will be asked to record her statement when she appears in the apex court on December 1.
“Our only concern is to do complete justice without punishing any one who is not guilty or sending the complainant without justice,” observed Justice Rana Bhagwandas while hearing a complaint of Shahnaz Fatima, elder sister of the unwed mother, Mehnaz Fatima.
Ms Shahnaz challenged the veracity of an earlier statement which absolved Abbas Raza Rizvi of the child’s parenthood, and requested the Supreme Court to order a DNA test to determine the parenthood of the child.
She alleged Mehnaz was forced to sign a blank paper which was forged into a statement.
She has accused the former naib nazim of having illicit relationship with her sister, then a student of class 9, on the promise that he would marry her. Later Mehnaz got pregnant and gave birth to a baby girl.
The complainant said she approached courts after her efforts to get a case registered against the accused were frustrated because of his influence.
Her efforts, however, forced Rizvi to admit before a Panchayat (council of elders) that he was the father of the baby, handed over Rs410,000 to Mehnaz and also agreed to marry her and to provide Rs5,000 monthly for baby’s care, Shahnaz claimed.
But he backed out from the promise, alleging that Mehnaz had an affair with his servant Abdul Ghafoor and not him.
On Friday Okara District Police Officer (DPO) Malik Tahir Mehmood, in line with the apex court’s direction, submitted records of the Lahore High Court and the Additional Sessions Judge Okara, which earlier had dismissed similar applications of Shahnaz.
Senator Dr Khalid Ranjha, representing Abbas Raza Rizvi, argued that Shahnaz had filed the application with the malicious intent of frustrating the confirmation of a judge whom he did not name.
Pleading that the court not to allow the application intended to undermine the judiciary, he also read out the high court’s order in which the character of the complainant’s family was questioned.
Justice Sardar Raza told Shahnaz during the hearing that in case the court ordered for the registration of FIR against the accused, her sister could also be implicated under the Zina Ordinance as she would also be blamed for committing zina, even if she was deceived by the accused.
On this Shahnaz told the court that she and her sister were ready to face the consequence but would not let the accused go free till he was brought to book.
Shahnaz alleged that when Mehnaz got pregnant, the former naib nazim gave Rs10,000 for aborting the pregnancy. “However the lady doctor dealing with the case suggested not to abort since it could threaten young mother’s life,” she said.
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