Man Accused Of Raping And Beheading Noor Mukadam Goes On Trial

Noor Mukadam Case Trial: Daughter of ex-diplomat of Pakistan was brutally raped and beheaded allegedly by her boyfriend Zahir Jaffer earlier this year. The case went on trial on Wednesday in Pakistan's capital Islamabad.

The murder of 27-year-old Noor Mukadam had shook the nation sparking several protests demanding reform to Pakistan's gender violence laws. The accused man, Zahir Jaffer, 30, has so far denied killing Mukadam. He is the son of a wealthy industrialist.

As per a report by AFP, a prosecution lawyer named Shah Khawar said that on Wednesday's hearing one witness was presented to the court and the other five will be produced in the next hearing. Mukadam was reportedly attacked after she declined the marriage proposal of Jaffer. Before her death, she made several attempts to escape Jaffer's mansion in an upscale neighbourhood of Islamabad but was blocked by the staff members, according to the police.

The police added that Jaffer alleged tortured Mukadam with a knuckle duster and then beheaded her with a sharp weapon. The report produced in court also said that Mukadam could have been alive if other people had not helped Jaffer. A total of seven accused persons along with Jaffer have been booked in the case on allegations of concealing the evidence. The accused persons include Jaffer's household staff and his parents.

Mukadam's murder is one of the many cases of such violence against women in Pakistan where survivors are discouraged from speaking out and are often blamed for abuse. As per reports, the government survey shows that from 2017 to 2018, 28 per cent of women in the age group of 15-49 were physically abused in Pakistan. Many experts have said that the number is much higher in reality as most cases go unreported.

The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan has said that the accused man, Zahir Jaffer, will escape justice just because he belongs to an elite family that has dual citizenship. The prosecution lawyer has said that he is expected the case to conclude within eight weeks.

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