KARACHI: A 19-year-old woman died at the Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) hospital on Wednesday after remaining in a coma for over two weeks due to alleged torture and brutal sexual violence by her husband, officials said.

“Shanti, 19, [marital] rape victim, passed away at the trauma centre of the CHK at 10:45am on Wednesday,” said police surgeon Summaiya Syed.

On July 4, the woman was brought to the CHK by her family in critical condition and doctors found that she endured a brutal sexual violence and torture.

On July 5, the police had registered an attempted murder and rape case against her husband and arrested him.

Shanti got married on June 15, and two days later, her husband brutally raped and tortured her. Her in-laws took her to a private hospital in Garden but brought her back home after her condition did not improve. Later, her brother took her to the CHK, where she was admitted to the intensive care unit in a coma.

DIG-South Syed Asad Raza told Dawn that the investigating officer of the case approached the hospital for recording the statement of the victim, but the medico-legal officer informed him that she was in a coma and could not give the statement.

The IO also approached the private hospital in Garden and asked the doctor concerned as to why he did not inform the police when the victim was brought there in June. The doctor told the police that the family submitted a sign document stating that they did not want any legal action.

The DIG said the victim’s brother on July 13 provided the IO with a USB containing her video statement, recorded before she fell into a coma.

The video was sent to the Forensic Laboratory Lahore and their report was still awaited, he added.

Victim’s husband confesses

The husband of the marital rape victim confessed to his crime before a judicial magistrate in his statement recorded under Section 164 of the criminal procedure code.

Judicial Magistrate (South) Kalsoom Mustafa Sahto recorded the suspect’s statement and sent him to prison on judicial remand.

A case was registered at the Baghdadi police station under Sections 376-B (punishment for rape) and 324 (attempted murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Published in Dawn, July 24th, 2025