PESHAWAR, May 21: A local court on Monday acquitted a man and a transvestite of the same sex marriage.
Judicial magistrate Mohammad Ilyas pronounced acquittal on completion of arguments by the prosecution and the defence, saying the charge against the two, Malik Iqbal and Kashif alias Rani, couldn’t be proved.
Mr Iqbal later told reporters that he would file a defamation case against the then station house officer of the relevant Faqirabad police station as he belonged to a respectable family and was falsely implicated in the case.
Police had arrested 47 persons, including the accused and several transvestites, in the May 25, 2010, raid on a Faqirabad plaza, claiming that the function of the same sex marriage was underway at the plaza.
The defence lawyer denied the claim and said several transvestites and musicians were tenants at the plaza owned by the accused, while the function was organised to celebrate birthday of Kashif alias Rani.
A day after arrest in the plaza, around 45 people were freed by police on bail, while the accused were granted bail by the court of additional district and sessions judge on June 4, 2010.
The FIR of the case was registered at Faqirabad police station by the then SHO, Shaukat Shah, under sections 3 and 4 of Dancing Act, 1974, section 377 (unnatural offence), 511 (attempting to commit offence), 294 (obscene acts and songs in public), 148 (rioting) and 149 (unlawful assembly) of Pakistan Penal Code, read with Section 13 of the Arms Ordinance.
The SHO alleged that he had received report that the two were attempting to marry during a function at the plaza owned by the accused.
Anjum Pervez, lawyer for the accused, insisted that the case was cooked up with malicious intentions.
He said his client owned the plaza, where the transvestite’s birthday function was underway and that his client was also in attendance.
He added that Section 377 of PPC dealt with unnatural offence against any man, woman or animal, and how could it be possible that the accused committed the said offence in the presence of over 50 persons.
The accused said police had overstepped its authority by raiding a private place and that a few days before the incident, another case was registered against him (Iqbal) regarding possession of an unlicensed Kalashnikov.
He added in that case, altercation had taken place between him and the then SHO of the area, and the latter had told the former that he would teach him a lesson.
The central leader of transvestites, Almas Bobi, too, visited Peshawar during the hearing into the case in June 2010 and led a protest demonstration against police.