ISLAMABAD: The civil judge and his wife, accused of inflicting severe torture on their 14-year-old maid, have gone into hiding, leaving the police in pursuit.
Efforts to locate Civil Judge Asim Hafeez and his wife Somia included raids on their residences in Islamabad and Gujranwala. However, authorities have so far been unable to ascertain their whereabouts.
Police have also been in contact with the victim’s parents, who lodged the complaint in the case. The investigation is set to widen after recording the victim girl’s statement once she is out of danger.
Currently, the young maid, Rizwana, is still in critical condition at Lahore General Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
A medical board comprising 12 members has been constituted to oversee Rizwana’s condition. She has already undergone a major procedure in the hospital, including a CT scan of her head and minor surgery to clean her head wounds. Doctors plan to perform two operations on her fractured arms.
The victim’s father, who had sent his daughter to the judge’s house in Zartaj Housing Society for a monthly salary of Rs10,000 through an acquaintance, revealed that the civil judge’s wife broke the girl’s arms and legs.
He urgently appealed to higher authorities to take stringent action against the accused.
According to the First Information Report (FIR) registered against the accused at Humak police station in Islamabad, the civil judge’s wife, Somia, attempted to strangle Rizwana, leaving visible marks on the girl’s neck.
Shockingly, the victim’s grandmother further alleged that her employer even forced acid into Rizwana’s mouth. She recounted that when Rizwana’s mother came to Rawalpindi to retrieve her daughter, Somia threw the injured girl near her and promptly fled the scene.
