Medical student Asma Rani’s murderer ‘pardoned’
Girl's father denies he acted under duress or took money
SAMAA |
Siraj Khan - Posted: Aug 30, 2021 | Last Updated: 6 days ago
Medical student Asma Rani (File)
A man convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of medical student Asma Rani has been ‘pardoned’ by her father, SAMAA Digital has learnt.
Rani’s father Ghulam Dastageer says he had faced threats but he decided to pardon the killer only for the sake of Allah’s blessings after consulting with local notables and ulema.
Mujahid Afridi had gunned down Rani on January 27, 2018, in Kohat after she turned down his marriage proposal. The young prodigy had named Mujahid in her last statement recorded on the video.
Dastageer said Mujahid Afridi’s family visited him at his home and implored for pardoning the killer.
“They wronged my daughter but I have decided to pardon the culprit for the sake of Allah’s blessings,” he said.
“I was also receiving threats in connection with the case and I was also told that ‘we are in the government, so you should consent to the settlement’ but I was adamant that I will see Asma’s killer at the gallows,” Dastageer said.
He said after consulting with local notables and ulema he made the decision for the sake of Allah’s blessings and he was thankful to all the people who had supported him in the case.
Mujahid Afridi’s family and the Kohat Police confirmed that a settlement had been concluded.
The police say Dastageer pardoned the death sentence convict Mujahid Afridi at a Jirga, and the formal declaration of the settlement would be announced at the Kohat Tabligi Markaz next Sunday (on September 5).
Meanwhile, Asma Rani’s father has been accused of making the decision under duress or in exchange for money. Dastageer has rejected the claims in a video message.
Who was Asma Rani?
Asma Rani was a 3rd-year MBBS student at the Ayub Medical College Abbottabad.
Rani’s family hails from Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but they lived in Kohat.
The video statement that Rani recorded before she breathed her last went viral and led to the arrest of Mujahid who had fled to Saudi Arabia.
“Mujahid Afridi,” she clearly names the killer after repeating his first name three times.
The video caused outrage in the country.
After the murder, Mujahid Afridi fled to Saudi Arabia, where he was arrested by Interpol at the request of Pakistan. He was extradited in March 2018.
Security concerns caused officials to move the murder trial to Peshawar from Kohat after the initial few proceedings. In June 2021, a Peshawar court sentence Mujahid Afridi to death, acquitting two other accused Shahzeb and Siddiqullah.