PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Friday summoned the police official investigating the murder of a medical student in Kohat along with record of the case on next hearing.
A bench of the high court was hearing a petition filed by the brother of the deceased girl seeking transfer of the murder case from Kohat to Peshawar.
The petitioner’s lawyer argued that the suspected murderer of Asma Rani belonged to an influential family. He was using his influence to extend threats to the victim’s family, he added.
He said that was the reason that no lawyer was ready to plead the case on behalf of her family in Kohat.
The counsel, thus, pleaded with the high court to order transfer of the case from Kohat to any court in Peshawar for trial.
Earlier this week, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar directed the authorities concerned to ensure the arrest of absconding prime accused, Mujahidullah Afridi, in Asma Rani murder case within a month.
A three-judge bench of Supreme Court, headed by Justice Nisar, heard the suo motu case of Asma’s murder in Kohat, who was shot dead by Afridi after she turned down his proposal of marriage.
Asma Rani’s murder
Asma Rani, a third year student at Ayub Medical College, was shot dead in January after she rejected a marriage proposal of the accused.
She was returning home in a rickshaw with her sister-in-law when suspect Mujahid Afridi who was already present outside their house shot her dead.
Asma received three bullet wounds and was shifted to a hospital in critical condition but later she died of her wounds.
The victim revealed the name of the person who fired on her in the moments before her death.
She said his name was Mujahid Afridi and he was the nephew of PTI district vice-president Kohat Aftab Alam.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had also approached the Interpol Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) to locate and get extradition of the accused to Pakistan.
Police had registered an FIR of the case on the complaint of the brother of the deceased, Muhammad Irfan, under Section 324 and 304 of Pakistan Penal Code.