Khalid Mahmood
At present, our society is literally trapped in a cul-de-sac, and there is no one around, to lead this dysfunctional state out of chaos. Survival of dynasty and conserving ill-gotten money is top priority of the elite class.
Delhi might be rape center of the world, but Kasur has become epicenter of child molestation, rape and murder. Kasur is famous and deeply revered all over the world for our syncretic free thinker and poet of 18th century Bhulley Shah and our celebrated virtuoso of singing Noor Jehan.
The very outbreak of this endemic menace has tainted its repute temporarily for the wrong reasons. Although, reports of child molestation and murder were booming from Kasur but in January rape and murder of little Zainab has shocked the whole nation.
The incident happened, when Zainab’s parents had gone to Saudi Arabia for performing Umrah and Zainab was living with her uncle. On 4 January 2018, while going to a Quran tuition class which was very close to her house, she went missing.
Her uncle, Muhammad Adnan, lodged a complaint with the Kasur District Police Office.CCTV video footage which was discovered by Ansari’s family members, with no help from the authorities involved, shows her accompanied by an unknown bearded man in white clothes and a jacket, holding her by the hand and walking on Peerowala Road in Kasur.
Her body was later found in a garbage heap in Shahbaz Khan Road on 9th January 2018. After an autopsy, it was confirmed that she had been raped and strangled to death.
Although, every year, we are purchasing latest military hardware based on new scientific discoveries but evidence based on forensic evidence is not admissible as a basic evidence for conviction in our courts as per Supreme Court ruling;
https://www.dawn.com/news/1385127/dna-test-admissibility-as-evidence-sc-ruling-may-prove-a-hurdle-in-conviction-in-kasur-case
The government is more concerned to the primal religious conformity than employing scientific accurate tools for justice. Punjab Police has arrested serial rapist killer Imran Ali from Kasur. Police claims that his DNA test matches with rapist samples collected from victims.
The defence attorneys of the accused will claim mental derangement or might prove him a psychopath. The people of Kasur demand hanging of criminal at a public place. Meanwhile, our self serving parliamentarians would not budge to enact new law to make DNA based scientific evidence as basic evidence for conviction of perpetrators.
Any rape victim, dead or alive, cannot produce eyewitnesses for conviction of criminals; but DNA based evidence collected from crime scene, can accurately identify the criminals. After spreading ripples of frenzy, across the pond of electronic media, they are scavenging non issues, which will never bring any substantial change for public at large.
The sequence of newsreel bombardment on picture tubes is quite mind boggling if not utterly deluding, one moment you see turbo charged fanatics rejoicing over acquittal of yet potential murderers in Mishal Khan case and next moment you see lascivious pursed lips commercial, obviously demanding soft drink but stealthily meaning something else. Those, who are supposed to fix these maladies, are too busy harnessing the powerful racketeers to their own wagon.
Unfortunately, in Pakistan, the crimes of utmost gravity are dealt with levity; most probably the fear of self incrimination can quickly prompt authorities to wash the crime scene quickly instead of collecting forensic pieces for evidence.
It has been practiced big time in December 2007. When apex of the system indulges in intentional spoliation of evidence, other demagogues, organized criminals, petty thieves and fanatic pressure groups, naturally put the whole system into checkmate.
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