“Ever since I turned 15-16, Namoos has been teasing me and always asking me to make friends with him. I resisted his immoral advances and even informed my father about the matter,” he told Dawn.
Mr Gul said that on several occasions he had exchanged hot words and scuffled with Namoos but he did not mend his ways.
The culprit opened fire at Mr Gul on Jan 27, 2005, when he came out of his residence at Katozai area in Charssada district’s Shabqadar tehsil. Although he was immediately taken to a hospital, the bullet wounds caused severe damage to his nerves and backbone, leaving him crippled for life.
When this correspondent saw Mr Gul on the premises of the high court in connection with his case, he was being brought on the shoulders of his old father and a relative. A urine bag was attached to his body.
Namoos was convicted by a sessions court in Charssada and was sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs390,000. The convict had filed an appeal before the high court for acquittal but the victim had filed a revision petition praying that the sentence of the convict be enhanced.
Mr Gul said his father was a labourer at a sugarcane processing factory. He said that he too had done some labour work in 2001 to support his family of four sisters and a brother.
“I used to face a lot of hard time due to Namoos. He would chase me every time I would go out of my house and pass insulting remarks,” Mr Gul said, adding that some elders of the locality had also intervened and urged the convict Namoos to mend his ways but he did not listen.
“He has ruined my life and I now want justice from the court. I want Namoos to be awarded exemplary punishment so that no one in future could dare commit such immoral acts,” the innocent-looking young man said in choked voice.
His father Kareem Gul told Dawn that he had no money for providing medical treatment to his son. He said that doctors had told him that his treatment would require millions of rupees which was impossible for him to afford.
