OKARA: An additional district and sessions court has convicted a man under the law of Qazaf and sentenced him to 80 lashes for falsely accusing his former wife of adultery.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Rana Khalil Ahmad Khan handed down the punishment to the convict, Muhammad Boota, after finding him guilty of levelling allegations of zina (adultery), claiming his ex-wife had illicit relations with strangers, gave birth to an illegitimate baby girl, and that the child was not his.

The convict’s former wife had initially filed a Qazaf complaint before a local magistrate, which was dismissed after preliminary arguments.

She later challenged the decision before the Federal Shariat Court through her counsel Nayyar Iqbal Lakhvi. The court, headed by Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman, accepted the revision petition, set aside the magistrate’s order dated June 4, 2024, and directed the trial court to summon the accused and proceed in accordance with the law.

Following the directive, the trial court framed charges against Muhammad Boota and the complaint was transferred to the court of the additional district and sessions judge for trial.

After completing proceedings, the court held that the woman had successfully proven the charge against the accused beyond reasonable doubt. The court convicted Muhammad Boota under Section 7 of the Offence of Qazaf (Enforcement of Hadd) Ordinance, 1979, and sentenced him to 80 lashes as Hadd punishment.

After the sentence was announced, the convict fled from the courtroom.

The court subsequently issued perpetual non-bailable arrest warrants and directed the Okara district police officer (DPO) to arrest the convict. Copies of the judgment were also sent to the superintendent of District Jail Okara and the in-charge of the prosecution department.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2026