‘Honour Killing’
A significant development has emerged in the suspected honour killing case from Rawalpindi’s Pirwadhai area, as the deceased woman’s second husband turned himself in to the police on Saturday night, police confirmed.
The case involves the tragic murder of a 19-year-old woman, allegedly killed in the name of so-called honour following an illegal jirga ruling. The woman was reportedly murdered on July 16 and quietly buried the next day in a local graveyard, without any official documentation or post-mortem examination.
According to the first information report (FIR) registered on July 21, the young woman was initially married to Zia-ur-Rehman and had left his home on July 11, taking along gold jewellery, Rs150,000 in cash, and her personal belongings. It was later discovered that she had married another man, Usman, on July 12 in Muzaffarabad, while still being legally wed to Zia-ur-Rehman.
Usman, the woman’s second husband, surrendered to Rawalpindi police in Pirwadhai. Hailing from Chehla Bandi, Muzaffarabad, Usman works as a mechanic near the Pirwadhai bus stand. Their Nikahnama confirms their marriage took place just a day after she left her first husband’s home.
Before her death, the woman had also appeared before a judicial magistrate and provided a sworn statement, asserting that her marriage to Usman was of her own free will. She also sought legal protection from the court, citing threats to her safety.
In her statement, the woman mentioned that her father had passed away, her mother had remarried, and that her first husband, Zia-ur-Rehman, had verbally divorced her. This background sheds light on the challenges she faced and her motivation to seek a second marriage.
In a video statement released online, Muhammad Ilyas — Usman’s father and the victim’s father-in-law — claimed his family had supported the girl and even helped her seek legal protection. “We are poor labourers. I borrowed Rs30,000 to Rs40,000 to help her reach the court and get married lawfully,” he said. Ilyas added that the couple began their new life together, but only days later, their home was raided by armed men who issued serious threats to the family. In fear, the family handed the young woman back to her relatives.
Two days later, they were informed of her murder.
To protect his son from being wrongly implicated in the case, Ilyas said he voluntarily handed Usman over to police custody. He also appealed to authorities to provide protection to his family, claiming they continue to receive threats related to the case.
The case has drawn widespread attention for the alarming resurgence of so-called honour killings and the role of illegal jirgas in influencing violent decisions outside the legal framework. Police say investigations are ongoing to determine the full sequence of events, identify all individuals involved, and bring the perpetrators to justice.
