A shocking honour killing case in Rawalpindi took a disturbing turn today as authorities exhumed the grave of a 19-year-old girl, murdered following a jirga's verdict on July 16.
The court-ordered exhumation took place at the Chatti Qabrastan (graveyard) in the Pirwadhai area under strict police security, 24NewsHD TV channel reported on Monday.
According to the details, gravedigger Rasheed and Qabrastan Committee (cemetery committee) secretary Saif-ur-Rehman Khan, both currently under arrest, identified the grave in the presence of a magistrate.
The exhumation was carried out with the area cordoned off using privacy screens due to the presence of the female deceased’s body.
Teams from the Metropolitan Corporation, cemetery staff, and police were also on-site. Masked suspects were brought to the graveyard under heavy security measures, while all unrelated persons were barred from entry.
A forensic team and medical board from Holy Family Hospital conducted an on-site autopsy and collected forensic samples before the body was reburied in the same grave.
The medical board recovered a blood-stained sheet during the postmortem and the lady doctor has confirmed to the police that Sidra was strangled to death. According to sources, signs of torture were also found on the victim's head, face and body.
According to police sources, Sidra's ex-husband's marriage certificate is not registered. The police confirmed nine arrests in this case.
According to Rawalpindi police, the murder was ordered by the head of a local jirga, Ismatullah. Nine individuals are currently in custody, including Rasheed and Saif-ur-Rehman, both on physical remand.
The girl, later identified as Sidra, was buried in the same graveyard on July 17, a day after her murder.
In a dramatic development on Saturday night, the victim’s second husband, Usman, surrendered to police. According to the FIR registered by the girl’s first husband, Zia-ur-Rehman, she had left home on July 11 with Rs150,000, gold jewellery, and other belongings. He later learned she had remarried despite their existing marriage.
Usman, a workshop worker near the Pirwadhai bus stand and a resident of Chehla Bandi, Muzaffarabad, had legally married Sidra on July 12. She had earlier appeared before a judicial magistrate, stating that her father had passed away, her mother had remarried, and her first husband had verbally divorced her. She requested protection from the court, which was reportedly facilitated by her second father-in-law.
Muhammad Ilyas, Usman’s father, said in a video statement that the family, who live modestly as labourers, had arranged Rs30,000 to Rs40,000 to help the girl secure court protection. “We married them and submitted court statements, but four days later, armed men stormed our home and issued death threats,” he said. Under pressure, they handed the girl back to her relatives—only to learn days later that she had been killed.
Fearing his son might be framed, Ilyas voluntarily surrendered Usman to police custody and appealed to authorities for protection amid ongoing threats.
Reporter: Irshad Qureshi