This post is also available in: العربية (Arabic) English (English)
A man has just been sentenced to death after he was found guilty of raping a minor.
The decision was taken by the District and Sessions Court. The man, who’s name is Gulzar Shah, was accused of sexually assaulting and raping a girl who was only 10 or 11 years old. The incident took place back in 2016 and the case has finally concluded.
Shah was awarded a death sentence for his heinous actions and also has to pay a fine of Rs. 500,000. The use of the death penalty in this case comes as a surprise because it is almost never used in cases of rape. It is more commonly implemented in cases of murder or blasphemy.
The following words are stated in the judgement as reasoning behind the death penalty. “The accused did not deserve any lenient view, as he had committed a gruesome offence and the incidents of rape with minor girls have become rampant.”
Additional District and Sessions Judge (West) Naveed Ahmed Soomro was (one of) the judge who passed the sentence. His words on the matter were: “It is the duty of the court to deal with the offenses of this nature without any lenient view in order to create deterrence and peace in the society, where one would not worry about their daughters being ravished on a daily basis.”
If one considers the circumstances in which the judgment was announced, they can see the reasoning behind such a heavy penalty. Just yesterday, a girl was allegedly raped by a police clerk in the city of DG Khan. The man, who went by the name of Khaleel, has been arrested and moved to an unknown location. The girl is currently being monitored at a local hospital.
