PESHAWAR: The father of a girl, who recently died by suicide after jumping into the River Chitral in Nishku area of Upper Chitral district, has claimed that blackmail by a resident forced her into taking her life.

Police and residents told Dawn that the 23-year-old disappeared from her home in Nishku village at 3pm on August 14, prompting her father to report the matter.

The disappearance was recorded in the police daily diary on August 15. However, on August 21, the police, on a written complaint from the girl’s father, converted the initial complaint into FIR against unidentified accused under Section 365-B of the Pakistan Penal Code on the charge of kidnappingor kidnapping a woman to compel her into marriage.

The father alleged that his daughter had been abducted or killed. On August 24, the girl was found dead near Ayun in the Lower Chitral district.

Police say suspect will be behind bars soon

Upper Chitral district police officer Hameedullah told Dawn that the deceased’s father recorded a statement with a magistrate under Section 164 of PPC, naming the accused.

He said that it was a clear-cut case as the accused had been in contact with the girl.

The DPO, however, said that after the girl married another person, the accused threatened her and her family, forcing her into taking her life.

He said the police had yet to register FIR in light of the father’s statement recorded with the court as it was seeking legal opinion about the sections under which the accused is to be charged.

When contacted, another senior official of Upper Chitral police said the accused was likely to be charged under Section 322 of PPC for qatl-bis-sabab (murder without intention).

He said the accused was in a relationship with the girl before her marriage and had tried to blackmail her thereafter and even shared her pictures with her husband, resulting in her death by suicide.

“The police have viscera samples of the body for forensic analysis as well as a suicide note, purportedly left behind by her. In light of the statement of her father, the FIR will be revised as the deceased’s heirs have charged an accused directly. This case stands almost resolved,” he said.

On the other hand, the suicide note dated August 14 and written on a crumpled and torn-up piece of paper starts with calling the day her “last day.”

She mentioned a phone number, saying its holder would be responsible in case of her abduction or death. She signed off by writing her name.

The suicide and subsequent blackmail revelations caused a social media uproar across Chitral, with residents criticising the police for “dragging their feet on the issue at the behest of some local influential people.”

On Wednesday, Upper Chitral’s DPO travelled to Nishku village and met the deceased family and assured them that justice would be done in the case.

In a statement, the district police said that they were investigating the case diligently, and the accused would be behind the bars very soon.

They said that they had received the call data records and other necessary records related to the deceased, and the case was heading towards its conclusion.

The police said that no one was above the law.

The statement said that the postmortem was carried out after the recovery of the body from the river, and initial findings suggested that the deceased died due to drowning.

Shamsun Nabi, vice chairman of the Tehreek Tahaffuz Huqooq Chitral, said the Upper Chitral police should not “drag their feet” on the issue and arrest the accused without delay.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2025