November 25, 2008	Tuesday	Ziqa'ad 26, 1429

SHEIKHUPURA, Nov 24: Relatives of a 22-year-old girl have accused police of killing her during a raid in the Machike village, about eight kilometres from here, on Monday.

The initial autopsy report said the girl, Humaira, had died of ‘heart failure’ but her father and other relatives said a policeman ‘infuriated’ by her protests against the intrusion, had hit her with a rifle butt causing her death. The body would be re-examined by a four-member medical team on Tuesday.

According to her father Ahsan Qadir, a police party had entered his house by scaling the walls. They were looking for his brother-in-law Munawar, a police constable allegedly involved in a murder case.

Humaira protested and said she had not seen her uncle for a long time. The protestes, Ahsan Qadir alleged, ‘infuriated’ the raiding team and she was hit in the chest with a rifle butt. Humaira, according to her father, collapsed. They were taking her to a clinic but she died on the way.

The family brought the body to the DHQ hospital where provincial minister Chaudhry Ghafoor was due to visit to inaugurate the anti-polio vaccination campaign. The girl’s relatives brought the matter to his notice and he ordered the arrest of the policemen.

Sadar police later registered a case against Inspector Khalid Aslam, SI Ijaz Ahmad and constables Pervez and Ali Ahmad but took no further action.

Inspector Khalid Aslam told this correspondent that his men had not hit Humaira. He said he believed the girl had ‘a heart condition’ and she might have died of shock she suffered because of the raid.