PESHAWAR, May 16: The Additional Advocate-General of NWFP, Mussarat Hillali, who is also a human rights activist, on Thursday visited Zafran in the district prison, Kohat, and assured her that no injustice would be done with her.

Later, Ms Hillali told Dawn that Zafran was very much disturbed and apprehensive about her future and was requesting the court to consider her case sympathetically and set her free so that she could rejoin her family.

According to Ms Hillali, Zafran, whose sentence has became a source of embarrassment for the government at the international level, claimed that when she became pregnant last year she had informed her father-in-law, Zabita Khan, about the real story, but he was adamant that a neighbour of their village, Akmal Khan, should be charged with rape.

Zafran told the AAG that her husband, who was undergoing a life sentence at the central prison, Haripur, had sent a letter to his father, stating that Zafran’s pregnancy was the result of their meeting in seclusion.

However, she added, Zabita Khan continued to pressure her to charge Akmal.

Zafran said that her counsel, Sardar, had misguided her and asked her to charge her brother-in-law, Jamal, in the final statement.

The AAG also went to the district court and met Zafran’s counsel in the Shariat Court, Fakhre Azam, who believed that due to lacunas in the judgment, the appellate court would overturn the verdict.

Opinion

Editorial

Iran stalemate
Updated 02 May, 2026

Iran stalemate

THE US and Iran are currently somewhere between war and peace. While a tenuous ceasefire — extended largely due to...
Tax shortfall
02 May, 2026

Tax shortfall

THE Rs684bn shortfall in tax collection during the first 10 months of the fiscal year is a continuation of a...
Teaching inclusion
02 May, 2026

Teaching inclusion

DISCRIMINATORY and exclusionary content in Punjab’s textbooks has been flagged in Inclusive Education for a United...
Water vision
01 May, 2026

Water vision

WATER insecurity in Pakistan has been building up for decades as per capita water availability has declined from...
Vaccine policy
01 May, 2026

Vaccine policy

PAKISTAN has finally approved its first National Vaccine Policy; a step the health ministry has rightly described as...
Labour rights
Updated 01 May, 2026

Labour rights

THE annual observance of May Day should move beyond statements about the state’s commitment to the rights of...