'Suicide incident': SCBA fact-finding mission rejects police investigation into Murree teacher's death

Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) fact-finding mission on Wednesday rejected Punjab police's finding of an incident of burning of a female teacher in Murree, which has been declared as a 'suicide incident'.
The SCBA had constituted a two member mission comprising former SCBA presidents Asma Jahangir and Kamran Murtaza along with an executive committee member Tahmina Muhibllah in the matter. Talking to media on Wednesday, incumbent president of the SCBA Barrister Ali Zafar said that according to the mission findings there was a concentrated effort to paint the occurrence as a suicide rather than murder.
"The mission strongly feels that flawed investigation encourages crimes against women and this is one of the reasons that honour killings are on the rise where the accused finds much sympathy amongst those involved in the criminal legal system at the subordinate level," Barrister Ali Zafar said. He informed that the mission had noticed that there was a campaign of character assassination of the victim and there were credible reports that the family members were being threatened and induced to accept some rewards for their silence.
Zafar maintained that the mission has also expressed dismay that there was deep division in the society; women were in full sympathy with the victim whereas the men were either justifying crime or denying it totally. It is also stated that initially, the mission was quite satisfied with the inquiry but after their return, they were shocked to know that the investigation had declared the main accused as being innocent and the bail was granted to the accused.
He further informed that the mission was also disappointed at the role of doctors who did not perform their duty in taking down the statement of the victim and gave no statement to the police of her version of the incident of being burnt by the accused. It is important to mention that the mission has recommended to the SCBA president Ali Zafar to nominate a competent trial lawyer to follow the case on behalf of the family of the victim and that case should be pursued to the end. The mission has also noted in its report that the pattern of the suicide committed by women is completely different, adding that nobody would burn themselves to death and an easier way to commit suicide for women is to slit their wrist, take poison, shot themselves or at worst hang themselves to death.