The treasury benches in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly last month blocked a move by an opposition member to introduce a bill aimed at enacting an exclusive law for criminalising acid and burn related violence in the province.

While an exclusive law to provide protection against acid and burn crimes has yet to be enacted by the federal and provincial governments, the opposition MPA, Ms Nighat Orakzai, had tried to introduce the Acid and Burn Crimes Bill 2021 on June 3, but the treasury members blocked her move on the ground that a bill on the same subject had already been referred to the law department by the government for vetting.

For the last many years a proposed law on the subject has been in the pipeline, but its enactment has been delayed by the government.

This inordinate delay in enactment of the law has been causing multiple problems to victims of acid and burn crimes and their families. As the victims mostly belong to poor social background, it is often difficult for the family members to pursue the case in court of law and often results in compromises between the parties.

In April this year, a newly-wedded woman, Ms Muneeba, expired because of severe burn injuries at Akbarpura area in Nowshera. The deceased woman’s husband Shahabuddin, his sister and a niece were charged in an FIR registered at Akbarpura Police Station on April 25 on complaint of her uncle Islam Gul.

Few days ago their bail petitions were turned down by an additional district and sessions judge in Nowshera.

Initially, the FIR was registered under section 336 B (causing hurt by use of corrosive substance) of Pakistan Penal Code. However, after expiry of the victim at a hospital, the investigation officer incorporated section 302 of PPC.

The complainant Islam Gul told Dawn that they were under pressure from different elders in the area to enter into compromise with the suspects. He added that they received messages from the suspect’s family that they were innocent and they should be forgiven.

He said that they belonged to a poor family and had no resources to hire a counsel to appear in the high court, where the suspects have now been seeking bail.

He said the deceased was having four sisters and a brother and was around 20 years of age. He added that his niece was married to Shahabuddin, who was a tailor by profession, around eight months ago, but he used to quarrel with her on pity issues.

He said that on the day of occurrence they had received a phone call from Shahabuddin informing them that she had set herself on fire by sprinkling kerosene oil. He said that initially the police waited for her to get consciousness so as to record her statement but she expired due to serious injuries.

Mr Gul said that he and other family members were sure that she had not committed suicide rather she was killed by Shahabuddin and his sister and niece.

He said that they had no resources to contest the case and the government should extend them legal and financial assistance.

Few years ago another woman, Uzma Bibi, had died under mysterious circumstances due to burn injuries in Nowshera. She was allegedly doused with petrol by her husband, Rahat Sher, and other in-laws, and had expired on Jan 11, 2017, at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad.

FIR of that case was registered at Azakhel police station in Nowshera on the basis of statement recorded by the victim after she gained consciousness at Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar, where she was under treatment at that time.

Eight suspects were charged in that case including two women. The accused persons were acquitted after family members of the deceased woman had entered into a compromise with them.

Instead of introducing an exclusive law, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2011, was enacted in Dec 2011, for punishing those causing hurt to anyone by using a corrosive substance including acid. The law is applicable throughout the country.

Through that Act certain amendments were made in the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). That Act provides for maximum sentence of life imprisonment and minimum of up to 14 years with fine of Rs1 million for the offence of hurting a person with corrosive substances.

Interestingly, now an offence of causing hurt to a person by use of corrosive substance is a non-compoundable offence as no compromise could take place in it and an accused is charged under section 336-B PPC. However, when an injured person dies of burn injuries, the case is converted to section 302 PPC, which is a compoundable offence and the legal heirs of a deceased victim are empowered to enter into compromise with accused persons.

Section 336-B of the PPC states: “Whoever causes hurt by corrosive substance shall be punished with imprisonment for life or imprisonment of either description which shall not be less than 14 years and a minimum fine of one million rupees.”

For over six years a draft bill, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Acid and Burn Crime Bill, has been under consideration of different stakeholders including KP Commission on Status of Women, civil society members and government departments.

In 2015, the KP Commission on Status of Women had constituted an expert group, which conducted several consultative meetings to finalise draft of the proposed law. However, the issue continued to linger on and so far the law could not be enacted.

In the existing law the issue of sale and purchase of corrosive substances has not been addressed and the government on federal and provincial levels needs to introduce laws wherein this aspect of the matter should also be addressed.

Legal experts believe that the required law should be enacted at the earliest and it should include different aspects of the issue specially rehabilitation, treatment, free legal aid, compensation, etc to the burn victims and their families. Similarly, they believe that if a victim dies of burn injuries that should also be made a non-compoundable offence so that no compromise could take place in it.

Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2021

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