Pakistan's 27 Y/O Noor Mukadam
The 27-year-old daughter of a former Pakistani Diplomat Shaukat Mukadam has been found dead in a residence of Sector F-7/4, on July 20th, in Islamabad, Pakistan. There was an outrage in Pakistan after the incident came to light and the campaign grew nationwide for seeking justice for Noor, also the #JusticeforNoor can be seen trending hashtag on Twitter.
Pakistan Police officials have taken the son of a famous businessperson, Zahir Zakir Jaffer, into custody, for the murder of Noor Mukadam. According to the report, the suspect was arrested from his apartment where he was found with the dead body, which he had tortured brutally and beheaded. He allegedly held the girl captive for two days and tortured her, which was the result of his outrage for rejecting his marriage proposal. Signs of stabs were also found on the body.
The Father of Noor Mukadam now demands the death penalty for Jaffer for the crime against his daughter. Shaukat Mukadam filed a first information report (FIR) against Jaffer, under section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code. “People are all demanding he should be given the death sentence, so nothing short of that, because if people like this continue in society, these murders can happen to anybody”, says Shaukat Mukadam.
Investigators said Zakir Jaffer, the suspect in the case has premeditated the murder of Noor. He lured her to his apartment on July 18th in the name of meeting casually, which turned out to be a kidnapping and torturing for two days, and later on July 20th, Jaffer beheaded Noor. According to the investigation, a murder weapon, a knife, and an iron knuckle, which was allegedly used for torturing the victim before murdering her, has been found. The police have also arrested Jaffer’s parents for lying and hiding the shreds of evidence. While talking to the local media, the father of the accused has said that he “condemns this incident”. Further, he says, “I would like justice to prevail in this case. My sympathies are with the parents of the girl,”
Senator Sherry Rehman, Vice President of Pakistan People’s Party says, “this is not a one-off case and there must be justice for Noor and all other girls who have been violated or wronged, let alone killed”, “In a span of two weeks, there have been multiple cases of violence against women. With such incidents happening on a daily basis, it is important for us to discuss why the domestic violence bill is needed in Pakistan”.
According to World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Index, Pakistan ranks 153 out of 156, when it comes to gender-based violence. During the covid lockdown period, cases against women have risen sharply and this incident fuelled the violence and outrage on the streets of Pakistan. It has been found that a bill on Domestic Violence was passed by National Assembly but was put on hold by the Council of Islamic Ideologies. Domestic violence, sexual violence, honor killings have always topped a list of crimes in Pakistan. “Another day. Another woman was brutally killed. Another hashtag. Another trauma. Another (likely) unsolved case. Another trigger. Another fear fest”, tweeted by famous actor and singer of Pakistan, Meesha Shafi, on Noor Mukadam’s death.