March 13, 2025
By Farooq Mehsud
DERA ISMAIL KHAN
Tears of helplessness fill the eyes of 13-year-old Sawera, the daughter of Adil, who gave his life up to save her from being a victim of Vani, a cruel tradition dominant in some areas of Khyber Pukhtunkhwa.
Adil’s audio recording, where he explains the reasons for his suicide, bears witness to this tragic incident.
The incident took place in Dera Ismail Khan (DI Khan), a city that happens to be the hometown of Khyber Pukhtunkhwa’s Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and its Governor Faisal Karim Kundi. Despite the looming high court buildings here, archaic traditions like Vani continue to hold strong roots.
It is important to note that under the Vani custom, practiced in some tribes of Pakistan, a panchayat (tribal council) orders the forced marriage of a daughter or sister as punishment. The girl is then sent away from her home under the cover of darkness. Typically, the girls subjected to Vani belong to poor families who cannot afford to pay monetary compensation for damages. As a result, they are forced to accept these illegal decisions of the jirga, even against their will.
Adil, the father of six daughters and one son, chose to take his own life rather than accept the cruel decision of the panchayat.
But the question remains, how much longer will girls be sacrificed as scapegoats?
According to Adil’s brother, his last words, “Everything will be alright,” still echo in their home. But the grieving family and Adil’s widow question, has everything really become ‘alright’ now?
According to ASP Ali Hamza Butt of Paharpur, this is the second incident where Vani has been invoked in the past seven years, and that has been reported to authorities after Adil’s suicide.
“The last such FIR relating to Vani was filed in 2017,” he told Voicepk. Butt said the police took very swift action in the case, apprehending the suspects. “The girl was handed back to her family,” he said.
He added that the police have arrested five suspects, and the investigation is ongoing.
The incident and its aftermath
The FIR registered at Paharpur Police Station reveals that an audio message from Adil Ramadan, a barber working in Beguani North, went viral in the area. According to the FIR, Adil ‘ended his life by committing suicide’.
Initial police investigations revealed that during a wedding ceremony, Adil’s nephew was allegedly caught ‘engaging in inappropriate behavior’ with the daughter of the main accused. The matter was brought before a jirga, which imposed a fine of 600,000 rupees on Adil’s nephew. However, the main accused pressured Adil, saying, “My daughter’s honor was tarnished in your house.”
According to the FIR, a local panchayat then “summoned Adil and forcibly made him sign a statement agreeing to give his 13-year-old daughter in Vani.” The police stated that “as per tradition, Adil’s daughter was engaged to the son of the main accused, and pressure was exerted for an early marriage and rukhsati (departure of the bride to her husband’s home).”
The complainant in the case stated that Adil, ‘heartbroken by the panchayat’s decision, ended his life by committing suicide’. However, local police confirmed that his heirs did not file any formal complaint regarding the matter. The police’s initial investigation concluded that ‘the reason for Adil’s death was the decision to give his daughter in Vani.’
Heartbreaking audio message
A message allegedly recorded by Adil before his suicide has been circulating on social media. It was only after this audio went viral that the police registered an FIR in the case.
In the audio, Adil said about his daughter’s Vani, “We were not at fault. I did not forgive them, and you should not let them go either.” He accused the panchayat of forcibly taking him away and making him sign a statement, though he refused to hand over his identity card. “I pleaded with them, but they did not listen and falsely accused me,” he said.
Adil also appealed in the audio for the care and protection of his children. Breaking into tears, he said, “No harm should come to my daughter. I am ready to sacrifice myself; I don’t care what people say about my death. But I was innocent; I was framed for no reason.”
Legal action and challenges
In the Vani case of Beguani North, Dera Ismail Khan, District and Sessions Judge Syed Anis Badshah Bukhari has ordered the exhumation of Adil’s body for a post-mortem. This decision was made on the request of the prosecution branch. Following the court’s orders, the exhumation and post-mortem will be conducted under the supervision of the Judicial Magistrate Paharpur.
The prosecution branch of Dera had filed a petition in the court of the District and Sessions Judge, requesting permission for the exhumation and post-mortem to clarify the circumstances of Adil’s death. The court accepted the petition and issued the necessary orders.
On the other hand, the Paharpur police have requested to send Adil’s audio statement, recorded before his suicide, to a forensic laboratory. The police say that a forensic examination of the audio statement will help better understand the nature of the incident and the circumstances surrounding the death.
It is important to note that this case occurred in Beguani North, where several questions have been raised about Adil’s death. The prosecution argues that the post-mortem report and forensic examination of the audio statement will reveal further facts about the case. Following the court’s orders, the exhumation and post-mortem will now be completed under the supervision of the Judicial Magistrate Paharpur. Further action in this regard is ongoing.
Clash between law and society
In the eyes of the law, Vani is an illegal and cruel tradition. Pakistan has laws against Vani (also known as Swara), which have been included in the FIR registered by the police. These include Section 310-A of the Pakistan Penal Code (giving a girl in Vani as punishment), which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment. The police have also included Section 322 (punishment for qatl-bis-sabab, or unintentional murder) in the case.
Sohni Saleem Niazi, assistant commissioner of Paharpur, said some people in the area still accepted the decisions of the Panchayat and Jirga. Such incidents do occur, but they often go unreported. Most cases are suppressed and never come to light. “However, this particular incident was quite sensitive, as the girl’s father committed suicide, which is why it gained attention,” Niazi told Voicepk.
“The real problem lies in the fact that some people here continue to adhere to outdated traditions. They resist any interference, whether from the district administration, the law, or legal institutions. These individuals prefer to maintain their rigid systems and do not allow external intervention.”
However, according to high court advocate Saniya Noor, in practice, this custom still persists in some areas. “I myself hail from the area where this recent incident took place,” she told Voicepk. In the region, an incident of Vani last occurred in 2017 in Korjai. Since then, no such incident has been reported. “If any such cases have occurred, they were resolved through monetary settlements, and the custom has largely been abolished,” she said. However, these incidents still happen frequently. Due to a lack of awareness and education, they often go unreported, and many disputes are settled by exchanging money, Noor added.
“The government must take proactive steps to create awareness and educate local government representatives. They should ensure that laws related to Vani are strictly implemented in their areas. If additional legislation is required to address this issue, it should be enacted promptly. Only through such measures can we reduce and eventually eradicate this archaic tradition.”
Adil is gone, but he left behind a question: will another father be forced to sacrifice his life to save his daughter even after his sacrifice?