A model court in Multan sentenced Qandeel Baloch’s brother Wasim Azeem to life in prison for murdering his sister. Life imprisonment means 25 years in jail.
The social media star was strangled to death in Multan in July 2016 and her brothers Waseem Azeem and Aslam Shaheen were accused of murdering her. The brothers said that they killed their sister because she brought dishonour to their family and the “Baloch name” with her inappropriate videos and statements. While Waseem was arrested immediately, Aslam, who was accused of urging Azeem to kill Qandeel was arrested in Saudi Arabia this year with the help of Interpol.
Waseem had initially admitted to drugging and killing his sister but later changed his statement. The court had been hearing the case for three years. A high court had dismissed his bail applications twice before. The court had reserved its verdict after the defence and prosecution completed their arguments.
Meanwhile, six others accused in the case, including Mufti Abdul Qavi and Qandeel’s other two brothers Aslam and Arif, were not found guilty. Arif was reportedly the one who instigated Waseem to strangle his sister to death. Mufti Qavi was showered with rose petals as he exited the court.
While Qandeel’s father had initially lodged a murder case against his son Waseem and his accomplices in 2016, he later had filed a petition seeking a pardon for his sons but the court turned it down.
The affidavit said that the Anti-Honour Killing Laws (Criminal Amendment Bill) 2015, which prevents killers from walking free after being pardoned by the victim’s family, was passed months after Baloch was murdered and cannot be applied to her case.
