PESHAWAR, Nov 27: Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Tariq Pervez Khan on Monday summoned the brother of a minor girl allegedly molested by her step-father.

The chief justice issued the orders after hearing the mother of the victim, whom he had summoned. The chief justice took suo motu notice of the issue while hearing the bail petition of the accused, Sayatullah Khan, last week.

The chief justice had dismissed the bail petition on Nov 20 and issued directives for the victim’s mother Farkhanda to appear in the court.

The chief justice had converted the issue into a human rights case.

The girl, who is about 12 years old, has been residing in the women’s crisis centre.

The chief justice ordered that the victim’s brother Imran, who resides in Lahore, should appear on Dec 1.

Former vice-chairperson of the Human Rights Commission, Mussarat Hillali, appeared on court notice, whereas Deputy Advocate-General Sardar Ali Raza appeared for the provincial government.

The FIR of the case was registered on July 14 at the Sheikh Maltoon police station in Mardan.

The girl's mother had taken divorce from her father and married the accused. She has three children from her second marriage.

The woman told the chief justice that the accused had ruined her life. She stated that the accused had sold her property and now he had raped her daughter. She claimed that she had been treated very harshly and forced to leave her home and take refugee in her sister's house in Lahore.