A couple accused of murdering a child maid appeared in a court in Rawalpindi on Thursday.
Police said the couple beat the housemaid with a rolling pin allegedly for stealing chocolate.
Thirteen-year-old Iqra was taken to hospital in Rawalpindi on Tuesday in a critical condition. She died of severe injuries shortly after she was hospitalised.
A spokesman for Rawalpindi police said Rashid Shafiq and his wife Sana were charged with murder and remanded in custody for four days to allow for an investigation.
“Initially it was ascertained that the lady used a rolling pin for torture,” said spokesman Sajjad ul Hassan.
“The victim had multiple fractures; legs, ankle, arms, head. All this happened due to a missing chocolate,” he said.
Iqra’s father Sana Ullah, who lives in a rural Punjab village, said his daughter had been working with the couple for the past 22 months, during which they paid him Rs8,000 (around $28) a month.
“The beasts tortured my daughter in a way that no human could ever do,” he said.
“I demand justice for this brutality.”
Domestic workers frequently face exploitation, violence and sexual abuse, with Pakistan’s patriarchal and rigid social-class structure leaving them without a voice.
In the past, parents frequently forgave the accused through out-of-court settlements under Islamic law, which allows the victim’s heirs to either seek retribution or accept compensation in the form of blood money.
Prosecutions for housemaid abuse are rare despite media attention on high-profile cases, with perpetrators facing few or no consequences.
In 2020, a couple in the same city was arrested for allegedly murdering their seven-year-old maid, who was blamed for letting a pet bird escape.