Besides his wife, Civil Judge Asim Hafeez also used to torture Rizwana — a 14-year-old domestic help who was brought to the hospital in critical condition after being subject to brutal torture last month — accused the victim’s grandmother.
The case came to light on July 25 when the victim was shifted to a hospital in Lahore with serious injuries. Taking swift action on the reports, the police filed a case against the wife of the civil judge for the alleged brutal torture of the 14-year-old girl, employed as a domestic help at their house.
Talking to Geo News, her grandmother said, “The judge’s family used to lock her granddaughter in a room before leaving for Kashmir for a couple of days.” She was subjected to severe torture, her grandmother added.
Sonia — her sister — said that Rizwana used to speak briefly on the phone, adding that she did not tell them about the torture as the telephonic contacts were made in the presence of the judge’s wife.
It is pertinent to mention here that the civil judge was removed from his post and appointed as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) by the Lahore High Court (LHC) chief justice.
A day earlier, the domestic help underwent plastic surgery at the Lahore General Hospital. She is now recovering from his wounds.
Last week, officials probing the domestic help abuse predicted that the civil judge can also be taken into custody for investigations under the Children Act, as according to the law, employing a minor itself is a crime.
The investigators said that the statement of the 14-year-old victim in the domestic help abuse case will expose the reality of the torture as claimed by the complainant.
The case
As per the text of the FIR, the complainant had sent his 14-year-old daughter to work as a domestic help on Rs10,000 monthly salary, with the reference of an acquaintance named Chaudhry Mukhtar, seven months ago.
The girl’s parents found out about her being subjected to torture at the judge’s house on July 23 when they went to meet her.
It may be noted that the victim’s parents have said that they hadn’t met her during these seven months but talked to her on the phone sometimes.
“When we [complainant, his wife and her brother] entered the gate, we heard my daughter crying. Hearing that made me concerned so we went towards the room and found my daughter in wounded condition […],” the complainant stated in the FIR.
He alleged that his daughter was subjected to severe torture by the judge’s wife, and there were torture marks all over the child’s body.
Upon examining her condition, the parents found several injuries on the girl’s entire body, with serious wounds on the head, which were “infested with maggots”.
The major injuries described by the complainant include swelling on lips and eyes, broken teeth, and ribs and strangling marks on the neck.
As per the FIR, the complainant has accused Somia of torturing and keeping his daughter in illegal custody since the day she started working at the judge’s house and sought action on the matter.
