Suspects in Fahmida Sial murder case granted bail
The Larkana bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday granted seven-day protective bail to suspects involved in the case of Fahmida Sial’s murder. Shaheed Hussain Isran, father of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MPA Ghanwar Khan is among those accused.
Sial, a mother of two, was reportedly gunned down by Khan’s bodyguards in Khairpur Joso, Qambar-Shahdadkot district on November 3 over a property dispute. On November 5, locals staged a protest against the killing and accused the police of siding with the accused party as they had yet to register a first information report (FIR).
On Sunday, the police informed the aggrieved family that the accused had been arrested, however they were granted protective bail the following day.
The deceased’s husband, Taqi Sial, told media he was disappointed with the SHC’s decision, and accused the authorities of siding with the influential accused in the case.
Zhob women hold protest against police torture
A group of women hailing from Balochistan’s Zhob district staged a sit-in outside the Chief Minister House on Monday, November 8, to protest police highhandedness against a female resident of their hometown.
The demonstrators, who marched over 300 kilometres from Zhob to Quetta, alleged Rozi Bibi was brutally thrashed by police and booked under false charges along with other members of her tribe on the directives of an influential political leader. They further said the victim is doing poorly following the assult.
Protesters demanded that the Chief Minister of Balochistan and other concerned officials take immediate notice against all those involved in the incident.
CDA restores allotment of land for Hindu temple
The Capital Development Authority (CDA) withdrew its notification for the cancelation of a plot allotted for the construction of a Hindu temple and crematorium in Islamabad’s H-9/2 following widespread backlash and criticism. The four-kanal plot had been assigned to the capital’s Hindu community in 2016.
On Monday, the CDA’s counsel Javed Iqbal told the Islamabad High Court that the department had cancelled allotment of the land in February this year as the Hindu community had yet to begin any construction. The decision was quickly revoked following condemnation on mainstream and social media.
The CDA has clarified that in light of a decision of the federal cabinet, all allotments were cancelled if no construction had started. However, the Authority’s officers had misunderstood the decision and cancelled the plot assigned to Islamabad’s Hindu community, as approval for the construction of a border wall around the property had already been given.
In July 2020, the CDA stopped the Hindu community from building a wall around the allotted site following pressure from right-wing religious groups. The issue was resolved when city administrators granted permission for the wall’s construction in December the same year.
The CDA however has stated that it will not initiate an inquiry against the officers who misinterpreted the federal cabinet’s directives and cancelling the designated plot, as the incident came about due to confusion and not because of any malicious intent.
