KARACHI: A judicial magistrate recorded on Monday the confessional statements of two suspects in a case pertaining to the murder of a couple in the name of ‘honour’.

According to the police 25-year-old Abdul Hadi and 22-year-old Haseena, originally from Kohistan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, were killed in the name of ‘honour’ on Nov 22 in a Mominabad area since they contracted a free-will marriage.

Police had arrested nine relatives of the couple on Nov 27 for allegedly removing bodies from the crime scene and secretly burying them in a local graveyard in Ittehad Town on the directive of the girl’s family. Later, police got their remand for interrogations.

The investigating officer moved an application before a judicial magistrate (West) and submitted that two of the nine detained suspects were willing to record their confessions under Section 164 of CrPC before the court.

After completing the legal formalities, the magistrate recorded their confessional statements in which both suspects admitted that on the directive of the girl’s family, they transported the bodies of the couple to a cemetery in Qaimkhani Colony and buried them without any last rites.

After the confessions, the magistrate sent them to prison on judicial remand.

Meanwhile, the administrative judge of antiterrorism courts, Karachi, remanded on Monday the remaining suspects to prison in the present case.

The IO produced them before the court after their second remand ended and also informed the court that two suspects have already been sent to prison by a magistrate after their confessions.

The court directed the IO to submit investigation report till Dec 22. The father and brothers of the deceased girl are among the absconders.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2017