The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld Lahore High Court (LHC) verdict of acquitting five of the six accused in the gang rape case of Mukhtara Mai, the resilient woman who had gained international recognition and emerged as a symbol of the voiceless and oppressed women in the country. A three-member bench of Supreme Court, headed by Justice Shakirullah Jan, upheld the verdict of LHC and acquitted five of the accused, citing lack of evidence.
The life term of Abdul Khalique, the sixth accused, was upheld. Mukhtar Mai was allegedly gang raped in 2002 on the orders of the village council in Meerwala, a dusty farming village in Punjab. The case jolted the country and ignited international outrage. The rape was a punishment for her younger brother's alleged illicit relations with a woman from a rival tribe, the Mastoi. Later investigations revealed that the boy had been molested by three Mastoi tribesmen, and the accusation against him had been a cover-up.
While remaining non-committal on whether she would seek a review of the Supreme Court's verdict, on her twitter page, Mukhtar Mai twitted: "I did not receive justice today, hence I have left my fate in the hands of God. The release of the suspects has put my life in grave danger."
Still, she tweeted an hour after the verdict that "No court can weaken my resolve to stand against injustice". Tweeting on the judgement, she added: "The verdict proves that police dictates the justice system in Pakistan." With the case drawing international attention, the then Musharraf government granted monetary compensation and fast-tracked the trial as a result of which six men were sentenced to death by an Anti-Terrorism Court within three months. Five of them were acquitted by the LHC and the sentence of the sixth was reduced from death to life. In the wake of further condemnation, they were rearrested.
Mukhtar Mai herself used the money that came for her assistance to open a girl's school and a women welfare organisation. Serenaded by the international media for challenging the male-dominated social structure, she has travelled widely since and even spoken at the United Nations headquarters.
The attention that her case attracted also got the national Assembly (lower house of parliament) to amend the rape laws but Mukhtaran Mai, according to her website, still lives in fear as the very same villagers who tormented her continue to trouble her.