RAWALPINDI: Police have arrested a couple over allegations of torture of an eight-year-old maid who was employed at a house in Bahria Town as a babysitter.

The case was registered against the couple on Wednesday at the Bahria Town police chowki by Fazeel Ahmad, a resident of Khanpur Katora tehsil in Rahimyar Khan.

Mr Ahmad claimed that they had sent their eight-year-old daughter to work at a house in Bahria Town on the advice of a certain Dr Kausar who asked them to send their minor child to her daughter’s house to look after her babies.

According to the FIR, the girl stayed at the residence for six months and she was paid a monthly salary of Rs6,000. On the night of Aug 25, the couple tortured the child and caused two elbow fractures and injuries to fingers, the complainant alleged.

Eight-year-old worked at a house in Bahria Town

“There are several torture marks on the body of my daughter,” he added. The child was also humiliated by the employers who cut her hair, and her head also bore injury signs, the complainant added.

On Aug 26, the child did not come to her parents’ residence in Rahimyar Khan district and instead went to Khanpur Dam in Haripur after leaving the house of her employers, the FIR said, adding that they were informed about their daughter’s presence at Khanpur Dam by locals.

According to the FIR, the girl said that she had been tortured before as well and her employers used to beat her with a “big spoon and a baton”.

When they asked the employer about their daughter, they were informed that she had “escaped with some labourer”, the FIR said, adding that the allegations were untrue and baseless. After the registration of the FIR, the police detained the couple over charges of torture.

In a statement issued by the police, CPO Syed Khalid Hamdani said shortly after the incident came to light the police registered an FIR and detained the couple. He said the investigation would be conducted on merit and justice would be served in the case.

Last month, in a similar case a minor housemaid, who was hired by a civil judge, was subjected to “severe torture” by her employers at their residence in the federal capital.

Subsequently, the wife of the judge was arrested by the police after her bail was rejected.

According to the girl’s medico-legal certificate, the teenage housemaid had “laceration on head from vertex, on forehead, right side above eyebrow, swollen upper lips, laceration under upper lip on right side, broken left incisor and left canine, laceration on check, nose bleed, laceration on left side of vertex, multiple bruises on lower leg, fracture on right forearm, swollen left and right eyelids, bruise on right skull, laceration on back, multiple bruises on back and attempt on strangulation.”

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2023