Rawalpindi woman's murder: Court grants three-day physical remand of two suspects

• Two suspects arrested, remanded for three days.
• Police had requested five-day physical remand.
• Exhumation scheduled on July 28 by court.

RAWALPINDI: A Rawalpindi court has approved a three-day physical remand of two suspects in the alleged honour killing of a married woman in the Pirwadhai area.

The suspects are accused of facilitating the crime and were arrested by Rawalpindi Police on July 23.

The hearing was presided over by Area Magistrate Qamar Abbas Tarar, who granted the remand after police requested a five-day custody period for further investigation.

The case involves the suspected murder of a 19-year-old woman, reportedly killed following a jirga verdict, and secretly buried in a local graveyard.

The woman, married to Zia-ur-Rehman of Fauji Colony, had allegedly left her home on July 11 with gold jewellery, Rs150,000 in cash, and her belongings. She was believed to have been murdered on July 16 and buried the next day.

Following reports of a suspicious burial, the police launched an investigation and arrested multiple individuals, including family members, the gravedigger, and the graveyard committee secretary.

Magistrate Tarar has also issued orders for the exhumation of the deceased’s body, scheduled for July 28. The purpose is to conduct a post-mortem examination as part of the ongoing investigation.

Sources earlier revealed that the woman was reportedly locked in a room and killed in the courtyard of a house, in the presence of local community members.

Her body was then handed over to female relatives for burial rites and discreetly interred at night. The grave was deliberately concealed, sources claim.

The incident has drawn sharp condemnation from human rights groups and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), with activists stressing the need for strong legislative and judicial action against so-called honour killings.