KARACHI: Police on Wednesday night registered a case against a doctor and other purported friends of Dr Maha Shah on charges of criminal intimidation and others.

The young female doctor practising at a private hospital in Clifton committed suicide by shooting herself at her home in Defence on Aug 18.

South Zone DIG Javed Akbar Riaz told Dawn that the police had registered a case on the complaint of her father. “Police will ensure that investigation is done on merit,” vowed Mr Riaz. “We will try to find out who are the culprits involved in supplying drugs in posh areas of Karachi which cause such unfortunate incidents.”

The police have registered an FIR against her friends Junaid Khan, Waqas Hasan, Dr Irfan Qureshi and two others under Sections 334 (Itlaf-udw: hurt), 337-J (causing hurt by means of poison), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of her father, Syed Asif Shah.

According to contents of the FIR shared by South police with media, Dr Maha developed friendship with Junaid Khan through his sister around four years ago.

The friend allegedly lured her into misusing cocaine and other drugs and later on started beating and insulting her. The suspect also allegedly subjected her to criminal assault.

She became fed up with him. In the meantime, Dr Maha met Tabish Qureshi who offered her to marry her. When Junaid Khan came to known about this, he started threatening her and subjected her to ‘mental torture’ as a revenge.

Dr Shah informed this to her doctor friend Dr Irfan Qureshi, who allegedly took advantage of her situation and brought her at his home on the day of the suicide where the doctor allegedly gave cocaine and other drugs to her in large quantity.

The doctor also allegedly subjected her to ‘objectionable things’.

In a fit of anger, Dr Maha hired a taxi and came home where she narrated this whole story to her family members saying that she was being blackmailed owing to which, her life had become hell.

She also told the family that she was being threatened with dire consequences and was being humiliated. She told her family that she would end her life.

According to the FIR, Junaid Khan, Waqas Hasan and Dr Irfan Qureshi and others gave her physical and mental torture and were allegedly ‘killers’ of Dr Maha.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2020