A shocking incident of severe torture on a 13-year-old housemaid, employed by a civil judge in Islamabad, has come to light.
Reportedly, the police are facing accusations of reluctance to register a case against the judge, reported Dawn.
The civil judge, a member of the Punjab Judicial Service on deputation at the Federal Judicial Academy for about three years, and his wife, are alleged to have subjected the girl to merciless beatings and burns.
According to the Sargodha District Police Officer, the young girl had been hired as a housemaid through a contractor for a monthly salary of Rs10,000, about six months prior to the incident. The girl’s family was informed by the employer that they were dissatisfied, prompting them to take her back to Sargodha.
On their way back, the mother noticed the injuries on her daughter’s body, and they sought medical treatment in Sargodha, where it was confirmed to be a case of torture. Due to the severity of her head injuries, the girl was transferred to Lahore for further treatment, with the assistance of the Sargodha police.
Upon receiving a complaint and a medico-legal certificate detailing the girl’s injuries, police reached out to their counterparts in Islamabad, requesting them to register the case. Unfortunately, the response from the Islamabad police was deemed unprofessional.
Following media attention on the issue, the Sargodha police once again approached the capital police to file the case. However, the Islamabad police asked for the physical presence of the complainant at their station, despite having received all relevant documents from Sargodha.
The girl’s father lodged a complaint with the capital police for the case to be registered against the employer at the Humak police station. Police sources also suggested the possibility of a case being registered against the judge for hiring an underage maid and concealing facts.
The complainant detailed the horrific condition in which they found their daughter, with injuries to her head, hands, legs, and broken teeth. She revealed that she endured daily torture by the judge’s wife, who sometimes denied her food and confined her to a room.
In response to the allegations, the civil judge claimed that the girl had injured her own head and that his wife had questioned her about a theft incident involving gold ornaments. He further claimed that the marks on her face were a result of her habit of eating clay.
This distressing incident has raised concerns about the treatment of domestic workers and the need for swift and serious action against such perpetrators.
