KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) has upheld the jail sentence handed down to a man by a trial court for throwing acid on his wife.

A district and sessions court had sentenced Muneer Ahmed to 14 years in prison and imposed a fine of Rs1 million in 2020 for throwing acid on his wife, Rafia Khatoon, in January 2019 in a locality of Shah Latif Town, Malir.

The convict through his counsel filed an appeal against his conviction before the SHC and after hearing the two sides, and examining the record and proceedings, a two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha dismissed the appeal and maintained the verdict of the trial court.

The bench in its judgement said the prosecution had proved its case as the appellant with the intention to commit murder of his wife threw acid/corrosive substance on her, resulting grievous injuries on different parts of her body including the face.

In fact the evidence of the prosecution provided a corroborated chain of events from the appellant quarreling with the victim, leaving the house and coming back a week later and throwing acid on the victim/complainant, it said. The chemical report was also positive and the evidence of victim and other eyewitnesses was trustworthy and confidence inspiring, it added.

The order also observed that the appellant took the defence plea before the trial court that he was framed in the case as brother of the victim wanted his land, but the same issue was not put to any prosecution witness and only raised at the end of the trial and thus considered to be an afterthought.

The prosecution said the victim along with her mother, brother, husband and cousin was living in the same house located in Dawood Shoro Goth, Shah Latif Town, and on Dec 31, 2018, the appellant had quarreled with his wife and left the house.

He came back from his native town in Ghotki on Jan 7, and threw acid on his wife as soon as she came out of her house, it added.

Published in Dawn, May 6th, 2022