A man accused of trying to kill a woman by shooting her as she refused to marry him was arrested in Karachi and was found in possession of illegal weapons, the Ittehad Town police said on Monday.

However, the woman remained safe and a case under Sections 324 (attempt to commit intentional murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) was registered at the Ittehad Town police station.

As soon as the case was registered, a police team led by Station House Officer Inspector Rao Shabbir Ahmed, acting on the information of a special informant, successfully arrested the accused. The police team also found him in possession of illegal weapons. A case under Section 23(1)-A of the Arms Act was also registered in this connection.

In 2021, he had allegedly attempted to murder his ex-wife by throwing acid on her. A case was registered under Sections 336-A (hurt caused by corrosive substance) and 336-B (punishment for hurt by corrosive substance) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) at Saeedabad police station.

A firing case, in which the accused along with other unidentified persons attacked someone, was previously registered against him at Ittehad Town police station under Sections 337-H(i) (punishment for hurt by rash or negligent act), 324 (attempt to commit intentional murder), 109 (punishment of abetment), and 34 (common intention).

There has been a recorded rise in the cases of violence against women throughout the country in recent years, with the Sindh High Court noting that the police treat these cases in a non-serious way.

In March, a man was held for killing his wife outside Karachi Malir court. In January, an unidentified young woman was killed in an execution-style shooting in Orangi Town.