Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a couple is missing after their arrest by police officers from two stations on the instructions of a high ranking police official. The couple was married in a civil court and was declared as Karo Kari (black and blacky, liable to be killed). After their arrest their whereabouts remain unknown but the father of the bride is asking for a teenage girl from the family of the groom to marry him as compensation and to gain his assistance in arranging the release of the couple. The police officials are also pressurizing the family members of the groom to accept these demands. Police filed a case of abduction of the bride against 11 persons from the groom’s family including a child of five years.
CASE NARRATIVE:
Mr. Shahid Ali Shahani, 20, son of Haji Shah Nawaz Shahani, resident of Ghotki, married Ms. Nadia, 18, daughter of Ghulam Hussain Shahani, in a civil court at Malir, Karachi, Sindh in the month of November 2010. Mr. Ghulam Hussain Shahani, the father of the bride, was against the marriage when Shaid Ali’s family sent a formal request for the marriage of his daughter to their son. Ghulam Hussain accepted the proposal on the condition that one teen age girl from Shahid’s family should be given to him in marriage. Ghulam is 70 years old and was previously married ten times. Eight of them ended in divorced. Ghulam is a businessman and runs a car show room in Ghotki. It is alleged that he deals in stolen cars or those cars which are smuggled from Iran. It is also alleged that Ghulam has a business partnership with Gul Hassan Lohar, the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of police who provides him protection for his business.
After their marriage the couple lived at Pahalwan Goth of Karachi to hide from the family of the bride who threatened that they would be killed in honour killings. Ghulam filed a case of abduction against the groom, Shahid Ali, in Ghotki. On 23 January 2011, the case of abduction was fixed in the session court of Ghotki. The couple arrived on January 22 at the house of the groom to attend the court proceedings against them and to submit their marriage certificate. The information was leaked to the family members of Ghulam Hussain and the DSP. In the early hours of January 23 at 4 AM the police from two police stations, namely Adil Pur and Ghotki, raided the house of the groom. They came in two police vehicles and the DSP was leading the raid. The male members of the Ghulam family were also with the police party. They broke open the doors of the house and fired their weapons in the air. The women were abused and beaten and the hand of a sister-in-law of the groom was fractured. The police also took away Rs. 200,000 and gold from the house. The Police arrested the couple and since then their whereabouts are known.
Ghulam is still insisting for the barter of one girl from the groom’s family as compensation for the marriage. The station head officers of the two police stations will not reveal the whereabouts of the couple and are directing the groom’s family to contact the DSP. Ghulam claims that he held a Jirga, the illegal court of tribal traditions, which has announced that couple is Karo Kari and should be killed.
It is apprehended by the family members of Shahid that the couple might have already been killed in the name of honour.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to initiate an inquiry against the police officials and other perpetrators who have illegally arrested a couple without any charge and prosecute them for causing their disappearance. Please urge the authorities to recover them safely and provide them protection.
The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteurs on the Question of disappearance and violence against women calling for his intervention into this matter.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear ___________,
PAKISTAN: A couple is missing after their arrest by policemen – the 70-year-old father of the bride is demanding a girl from the groom’s family in compensation
Name of victims:
1. Mr. Shahid Ali Shahani, aged 20, (groom) son of Shah Nawaz, resident of Sodo Shahani, Ghotki, Sindh province
2. Ms.Nadia, aged18, (bride) daughter of Ghulam Hussain Shahani, resident of Sodo Shahani, Ghotki, Sindh province
Names of alleged perpetrators:
1. Mr. Gul Hassan Lohar, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Ghotki, District Ghotki
2. Station House Officer (SHO) of Ghotki police station, Ghotki
3. Station House Officer (SHO) Adil Pur police station, Ghotki district
All are employed in the Sindh province
4. Mr. Ghulam Hussain Shahani, father of Nadia, resident of Sodo Shahani, District Ghotki, Sindh province
Date of incident: 23 January 2011
Place of incident: Village Sodo Shahani, Ghotki district, Sindh province
I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the illegal arrest of a couple by officers from two police stations of the Ghotki distict. Following their arrest they have disappeared and their whereabouts remain unknown. The police are refusing to reveal their whereabouts since their arrest on January 23, 2011. A DSP of the Ghotki police is allegedly supporting the father of bride to punish the couple for their marriage and pressuring the family members of the groom to give one teenage girl as compensation to marry the father of bride who is 70 years old.
I am shocked to know that police have kept a couple incommunicado for pressuring the couple to accept the condition of the perpetrators. It is also alleged that the DSP is the business partner in the illegal business of perpetrator and is using his position to protect the man.
The details of the case are as follows: Mr. Shahid Ali Shahani, 20, son of Haji Shah Nawaz Shahani, resident of Ghotki, married Ms. Nadia, 18, daughter of Ghulam Hussain Shahani, in a civil court at Malir, Karachi, Sindh in the month of November 2010. Mr. Ghulam Hussain Shahani, the father of the bride, was against the marriage when Shaid Ali’s family sent a formal request for the marriage of his daughter to their son. Ghulam Hussain accepted the proposal on the condition that one teen age girl from Shahid’s family should be given to him in marriage. Ghulam is 70 years old and was previously married ten times. Eight of them ended in divorced. Ghulam is a businessman and runs a car show room in Ghotki. It is alleged that he deals in stolen cars or those cars which are smuggled from Iran. It is also alleged that Ghulam has a business partnership with Gul Hassan Lohar, the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of police who provides him protection for his business.
After their marriage the couple lived at Pahalwan Goth of Karachi to hide from the family of the bride who threatened that they would be killed in honour killings. Ghulam filed a case of abduction against the groom, Shahid Ali, in Ghotki. On 23 January 2011, the case of abduction was fixed in the session court of Ghotki. The couple arrived on January 22 at the house of the groom to attend the court proceedings against them and to submit their marriage certificate. The information was leaked to the family members of Ghulam Hussain and the DSP. In the early hours of January 23 at 4 AM the police from two police stations, namely Adil Pur and Ghotki, raided the house of the groom. They came in two police vehicles and the DSP was leading the raid. The male members of the Ghulam family were also with the police party. They broke open the doors of the house and fired their weapons in the air. The women were abused and beaten and the hand of a sister-in-law of the groom was fractured. The police also took away Rs. 200,000 and gold from the house. The Police arrested the couple and since then their whereabouts are known.
It is distressing for me as to how the police obeyed the illegal orders of high police officials and illegally arrested the couple.
Ghulam is still insisting for the barter of one girl from the groom’s family as compensation for the marriage. The station head officers of the two police stations will not reveal the whereabouts of the couple and are directing the groom’s family to contact the DSP. Ghulam claims that he held a Jirga, the illegal court of tribal traditions, which has announced that couple is Karo Kari and should be killed.
It is apprehended by the family members of Shahid that the couple might have already been killed in the name of honour.
I am appalled to know that the couple have been in the custody of the police despite the fact that it has been announced that they are disappeared. There is no legal rule of law for the police to their authority against the ordinary citizens. If any harm is done to the couple during their disappearance the police officials of the Adil Pur and Ghokti including the DSP of Ghotki should be held responsible.
I urge you to recover the couple from the police officials. These officers, including DSP Gul Hassan Lohar, should be prosecuted for illegal arrest and disappearance.
Yours sincerely,
—————-
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. Mr. Asif Ali Zardari
President of Pakistan
President’s Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 51 9204801/9214171
Fax: +92 51 9207458
Email: publicmail@president.gov.pk
2. Mr. Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani
Prime Minister of Pakistan
Prime Minister House
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: + 92 51 9221596
E-mail: secretary@cabinet.gov.pk
3. Syed Qaim Ali Shah
Chief Minister
Karachi, Sindh Province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 920 2000
E-mail: pppsindh@yahoo.com
4. Mr. Syed Mumtaz Alam Gillani
Federal Minister for Human Rights
Ministry of Human Rights
Old US Aid building
Ata Turk Avenue
G-5, Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: +9251-9204108
Email: sarfaraz_yousuf@yahoo.com
5. Mr. Muhammad Ayaz Soomro
Minister for Law, Parliamantry Affairs & Criminal Prosecution Service
Sindh Assembly Building,
Court road, Karachi, Sindh province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 9211982
E-mail: secy.law@sindh.gov.pk
6. Chief Justice of Sindh High Court
High Court Building
Saddar, Karachi
Sindh Province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 9213220
E-mail: info@sindhhighcourt.gov.pk
7. Ms. Nadia Gabol
Minister for Human Rights
Government of Sindh,
Pakistan secretariat, Barrack 92,
Karachi, Sindh Province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 9207044
Tel: +92 21 9207043 +92 21 9207043 +92 21 9207043 +92 21 9207043
E-mail: lukshmil@yahoo.com
8. Dr. Faqir Hussain
Registrar
Supreme Court of Pakistan
Constitution Avenue, Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: + 92 51 9213452
E-mail: mail@supremecourt.gov.pk
9. Inspector General of Police
Police Head office, I. I. Chundrigar road
Karachi, Sindh Province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 21 9212051
E-mail: ppo.sindh@sindhpolice.gov.pk
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)v
