Islamabad, Sep 8 (IANS): A 21-year-old Christian woman was killed in her home in Pakistan’s Rawalpindi by a Muslim neighbour whose advances were rejected by her, a report has detailed.
The victim, identified as Saba Mehboob, who had separated from her husband a year ago, was shot dead inside her home by the alleged suspect, Adnan Butt, according to her brother Joshua Mehmood. After killing her, the suspect kidnapped her teenage stepbrother and pressurised him to falsely confess to having committed the murder, according to a report in Christian Daily International-Morning Star News.
Joshua Mehboob said Butt accused his sister of dishonouring him before killing her in front of her stepbrother Anoosh. According to Mehboob, Butt, after murdering Saba Mehboob at gunpoint, took Anoosh outside where another man was waiting on a motorcycle. The two men allegedly took Anoosh to Butt’s brother-in-law’s home, where they threatened to kill Anoosh if he told police that Butt had killed his sister and pressurised the teenager to confess to the crime.
Mehboob said Butt also threatened to kill Anoosh’s father and other family members if they lodged a case against him. According to him, Anoosh was released by Butt after the family agreed that they would not register a complaint with the police, according to a report in Christian Daily International-Morning Star News.
After the family went to bring Saba Mehboob’s body from the hospital, police reached there to record Anoosh’s statement and asked him to become the complainant in the case. According to Mehboob, a First Information Report (FIR) was lodged, but the court granted pre-arrest bail to Butt.
Mehboob accused Butt of harassing and threatening Saba Mehboob for some time and said that her sister had slapped him twice after he blocked her way in a market. He said, “I think Saba’s rejection fueled his anger, leading him to murder her.”
Rawalpindi-based journalist Tariq Chaman said Saba Mehboob’s family and local residents have accused police of pressurising Anoosh to take responsibility for his sister’s death. Chaman said police have denied the allegations and claimed that the teenage boy has been kept in custody for protection.
According to Chaman, Anoosh’s father has also been kept with the boy as he is a minor. The family and local elders have called for the release of Anoosh and his father and for transferring the probe into the case from Dhoke Ratta police station to a senior police officer.
Human rights activists have been voicing concerns about the vulnerability of religious minorities in Pakistan, especially in cases involving forced conversion, sexual violence and allegations of blasphemy
In July, Baloch National Movement (BNM) chairman Naseem Baloch alleged that Hindu and Christian girls in Pakistan are being abducted, forcibly converted, and married off, describing the ongoing practice as a violation of their identity, dignity, freedom of conscience, family life, and fundamental human rights.
Addressing an event titled ‘Forced Conversions and Minority Women’ on the sidelines of the 62nd Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council at the Geneva Press Club, Naseem called on the global community to take urgent notice of the persecution of religious minorities as well as the violence against Baloch people in Pakistan.
“Forced conversion is not a private matter. It is not a family dispute. It is not a simple change of faith. It is a violation of identity, dignity, freedom of conscience, family life, and basic human rights. And when this happens to minority women and underage girls, it becomes even more serious. Because the victim is targeted not only as a woman but also as a member of a weaker community,” Naseem stated.
“Across Pakistan, Hindu and Christian girls have been abducted, forcibly converted, and married off. Their families are often too poor, too frightened, or too powerless to fight back. When they go to the police, they are ignored. When they go to court, they are pressured. When they speak out, they are threatened. We have seen this pattern again and again,” he added.
