THE murder of Zain, a student of Class IX, by the scion of a lord in Lahore cantonment’s Cavalry Ground, yards away from two checkposts, is a test case for the Punjab chief minister.

This crime occurred in the cantonment area when the country has declared war against terrorists and crime mafia. Weak prosecution by corrupt law-enforcement investigators has only helped Pakistan become a country where lives and property of law-abiding citizens are not safe.

It is this nexus between crime and corrupt law-enforcement that has helped Pakistan become a safe haven for terrorists of all shades to thrive in. In spite of police presence, Mustafa Kanju managed to escape from the crime scene.

Although law prohibits display of weapons, yet both Kanju and his guards not only displayed them, but reportedly fired in a densely populated residential area, killing an innocent orphan.

This country has witnessed gun-totting spoiled brats of ‘rags to riches’ supported by corrupt Sindh political elite who manoeuvred escape from law of murderers like Shahzaib and Hamza in Karachi, now wait to see whether the writ of the law prevails in Punjab, or it falls prey to the rich and powerful.

Does it not amount to exploiting religion when pressure is put on victim families to compromise on payment of blood money by those who can afford it even when they show no remorse?

In any case, payment of blood money does not absolve the responsibility of the state from punishing murderers and sentencing them to life-term.

Malik Tariq

Lahore

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2015

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