Arzoo’s purported husband remanded in police custody for three days

KARACHI: A judicial magistrate on Tuesday remanded the purported husband of 13-year-old Arzoo in police custody till Nov 6.

Police arrested Syed Ali Azhar on Monday night, recovered his purported wife, Arzoo, and sent her to a shelter home following an order of the Sindh High Court in a case pertaining to alleged abduction of the Christian girl, her purported forced conversion and underage marriage with a Muslim man.

On Tuesday, the investigating officer (IO) produced Azhar before Judicial Magistrate (South) Mohammad Ali Dall and sought his physical remand for conducting a DNA test and to arrest his alleged absconding accomplices.

Azhar’s counsel, Chaudhry Mohammad Ramzan, argued that his arrest was made in violation of an Oct 27 SHC restraining order.

Defence raises legal questions; magistrate says he can’t decide a criminal case during investigation

He submitted that the FIR of the incident was simply lodged under Section 364-A (abduction) of the Pakistan Penal Code and clauses of the Sindh Child Marriages Restraint Act (SCMRA), 2013 could not be subsequently incorporated in the case.

He said Arzoo had already told the SHC that she contracted marriage with Azhar of her own wish and, therefore, if anyone was of the opinion that SCMRA was applicable in this matter then he or she should register a separate FIR.

The counsel argued that the police remand request was not justified and he pleaded to the court to discharge his client under Section 63 (discharge of person apprehended by the magistrate) of the criminal procedure code (CrPC) or remand him in judicial custody.

The complainant’s counsel, Advocates Riyaz Abbasi, Luke Victor and Jibran Nasir, contended that the SHC’s Oct 27 order had been modified by the SHC on Nov 2 and on the basis of the same order Arzoo was sent to a shelter home.

They said that the law did not bar the court or the investigation agency from insertion of provisions of SCMRA in the FIR as the age of the victim was just 13.

They argued that the DNA test of Azhar was an essential requirement for the final conclusion of this matter.

State Prosecutor Abdul Rehman Thaheem also supported their arguments and that of the IO’s stating that the victim was 13, therefore, the SCMRA was very much applicable in this matter. He asked the judge to grant physical remand of Azhar.

IO Inspector Shariq Ahmad Siddiqui also filed a photostat copy of the SHC’s Nov 2 order stating that he would provide a certified one on the next date.

The magistrate observed that the FIR was lodged under Section 364-A (abduction) of the PPC and the provisions of the SCMRA were inserted later. “Therefore, such addition of provisions of Sindh Child Marriages Restraint Act in this matter by the investigation agency in other words appears to be the consequences of the act of marriage between suspect and the victim of this matter,” the judge noted.

The judge observed that there was no bar on the reinvestigation of a criminal case, and the police were at liberty to file a supplementary charge sheet even after submission of the final report under Section 173 of the CrPC.

“It may be mentioned that this matter is also under investigation and the investigation agency has yet to reach at final conclusion in respect of fate of this matter therefore it is a premature stage to determine the question of innocence or otherwise of accused named above.

“I may also refer here 2005 MLD, in which it was held that Magistrate could not sit to decide a criminal case during the investigation. If the magistrate were given powers to discharge and release an accused in very initial stage, there would be no room for success in criminal cases which were always investigated on different theories of probabilities,” the judge wrote in his order.

The magistrate remanded Azhar in police custody till Nov 6.