PESHAWAR: A local court in Lower Chitral on Monday sentenced a hired assassin to death and fined him Rs1 million for killing a resident of Garam Chasma and his pregnant wife over honour some three years ago.

However, the court exonerated the remaining three co-accused while declaring three others as proclaimed offenders. All the accused belong to Patrak area of Upper Dir district.

The additional district and sessions judge, Mohammad Qasim, delivered the verdict on Monday. Advocate Abdul Wali Khan and Alamzeb appeared on behalf of the accused while district public prosecutor Ayaz Zareen represented the state in the case.

The court in its verdict convicted Attaur Rehman and sentenced him to death on two counts under Section 302(B) of Pakistan Penal Code for killing Waqar Ahmed and his wife Tasleem Bibi.

Besides, the court also fined the convict Rs1 million as compensation, Rs500,00 each to the heirs of the two deceased in terms of Section 544-A of Criminal Procedure Code. In case of default, the convict will undergo simple imprisonment of six months.

The accused, Attaur Rehman, was also convicted and fined under Isqat-i-Jenian under Section 338-C of Pakistan Penal Code to the tune of 1/20th of Diyat as the child was born dead.

However, the court exonerated three co-accused, Khurshid Ali, Hamzala and Mohammad Hujjaj.

The court also declared three other accused identified as Tajuddin, Muzaffar Said and Shah Khalid, who were still at large, as proclaimed offenders and ordered their arrest.

The couple was murdered earlier in 2019. Waqar Ahmed, a resident of Ezz village of Garam Chashma tehsil, had married Tasleema Bibi, a resident of Patrak area of Dir Kohistan, against her parents’ will.

Sometimes later, a family from Swat rented a house in the village and they soon developed good relations with the family of Waqar. The Swati man took Waqar and his wife to hospital for checkup in his car and the couple never returned home afterwards.

The locals found the bodies of Waqar and his wife dumped by the riverside near Garam Chasma. The woman was pregnant while she was murdered.

Published in Dawn, March 22nd, 2022