October 8, 2026
By Hashir Ahsan
ISLAMABAD
Six years after she was accused of burning her five year old step child to death, a woman has been acquitted by the Supreme Court of Pakistan due to lack of evidence.
Aneeqa was nominated on December 18, 2020 in the case of burning her step child and the case had been registered at the Rawat Police Station, Rawalpindi.
On Thursday, the case was heard by a two-member bench led by Justice Malik Shahzad, and also included Justice Shakeel Ahmad. Det iuring the hearing, defense counsel Prince Rehan Iftikhar Shiekh argued that the accused was charged with burning her child to death, but no concrete evidence exists against her. The lawyer informed the court that no flammable substance such as petrol were recovered, while there were also no direct eyewitnesses against the accused.
On the other hand, the state counsel informed the court that the video statement of the accused was on record and she had also confessed to killing the child on a TV show. Responding to the state counsel’s arguments, Justice Shakeel Ahmad remarked that TV programs alone are not admissible evidence and must be supported by other evidence. He further stated that the investigating officer failed to fulfill his duty in this case.
Meanwhile, Justice Malik Shahzad pointed out that the testimonies in the case contradicted the medical report. After hearing all the arguments, the court ordered the acquittal of the accused.
Background
The FIR of the incident was registered on December 18, 2020, under Sections 302 and 201 of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of Muhammad Ali, son of Muhammad Qasim, a resident of Nai Abadi, Dhok Habibabad, Rawat, Rawalpindi.
According to the facts of the case, the complainant’s brother, Muhammad Anwar, had contracted a second marriage with Ateeqa approximately five or six months prior to the incident, while he had four children from his first wife, among whom the youngest son, five year old Muhammad Ikram (the deceased), also lived with his father.
According to the complaint there were frequent disputes in the house between Ateeqa and Anwar, as she was allegedly unhappy with the child’s presence. On December 18, 2020, when Muhammad Anwar had gone to his mobile shop and only Ateeqa and Ikram were at home, news was received around 5:00 PM that Ikram had gone missing.
During a search by family members, the complainant’s sister, Sadia Fatima, found a nylon bag in an under-construction room on the upper floor; upon opening it, the burnt body of Ikram was recovered inside.
According to the allegations by the complainant, Ateeqa choked the child with a cloth around his neck, burnt the body, and sealed it in a bag, hiding it behind an iron box in order to conceal evidence.
After the charge sheet (challan) was submitted, the accused was indicted on May 19, 2021, following which the prosecution produced a total of 11 witnesses—including a draftsman, police officials, a lady constable, a doctor, and the complainant—along with the site plan, FIR, recovery memo, post-mortem report, and FSL reports as evidence.
After trial proceedings, Additional Sessions Judge Islamabad (East) Mr. Muhammad Sohail announced the verdict on July 26, 2022, sentencing Ateeqa under Section 302 PPC to life imprisonment and a compensation fine of PKR 500,000 (with an additional 6 months imprisonment in case of non-payment), and under Section 201 PPC to 5 years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of PKR 25,000 (with 1 month additional imprisonment in case of non-payment).
According to the proforma of Central Jail Rawalpindi, the accused has been incarcerated since December 19, 2020, where she has earned remissions totaling six years, seven months, and 17 days; in case of payment of fine, her expected release date would be May 1, 2044, whereas in case of non-payment, it would be December 1, 2044.
On the other hand, the appeal filed in the Supreme Court took the stance that the trial court’s judgment is contrary to the law and facts, as no direct or circumstantial evidence of the crime exists against the accused, nor has any recovery been made from her.
The appeal also pointed out that the statements of the witnesses are based merely on ‘hearsay’, the FIR was registered late on a fabricated complaint after the post-mortem, and during the statement under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the fundamental question regarding the murder was not even put to the accused.