ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court, in a poignant observation, has called out society for its apathy towards victims of domestic violence, noting that despite sustained maltreatment by their husbands and in-laws, women are still forced to return to the same abusive environments.
“With a heavy heart we state that in similar cases, where daughters are subjected to sustained maltreatment by their husbands or in-laws, it is the sad state of our society, though with a few exceptions, that families still compel them to return to the same abusive environment,” observed Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim in a six-page judgement regarding domestic violence in an abusive marriage case.
Headed by Justice Muhammad Hashim Kakar, a three-judge SC bench had taken up a jail petition of Khursheed Ahmad against the Feb 1, 2022 rejection of his plea by the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi bench.
The SC, however, upheld the conviction of the petitioner for the murder of his wife, Gulshan Bibi.
Husband’s conviction upheld as no evidence of natural death found
In the verdict, Justice Ibrahim expressed deep regret that women subjected to such treatment were undeniable victims of domestic violence and deserved protection, compassion and effective legal recourse. But societal pressures and entrenched cultural norms often compelled families to send their daughters back into circumstances that amounted to nothing less than a ‘living hell’, he observed.
Khursheed Ahmad was initially convicted by an additional sessions judge, Fatehjang (Attock), under Section 302(b) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) on Feb 12, 2021. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for his wife’s murder and directed to pay compensation of Rs200,000 under Section 544-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to the legal heirs of the deceased.
The petitioner then challenged his conviction before the LHC, Rawalpindi bench, which dismissed his criminal appeal though it also set aside the conviction and sentence under Section 302(b) of the PPC. Instead, he was convicted under Section 316 of PPC for committing Qatl Shibh-i-Amd and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment. He was also ordered to pay Diyat amounting to Rs2,055,936 to the legal heirs of the deceased.
Through the present jail petition before the SC, the convict sought leave to appeal against the LHC decision. The apex court carefully examined the record and the evidence produced during the trial.
The SC noted that the convict, according to one of the prosecution witnesses, was unemployed, addicted to narcotics and frequently quarreled with his wife. In 2018, following repeated physical abuse, Gulshan Bibi left the petitioner’s house and began living with her parents. Upon the intervention of family elders, the parties reconciled and resumed cohabitation on the eve of Eid.
The witness deposed that he received a call from a woman residing in the vicinity of his sister’s house, informing him that the convict had murdered Gulshan Bibi, on July 21, 2019.
The complainant, along with his brothers Rasheed, Naseem Gul and Muhammad Akhlaq Ahmad, immediately rushed to their sister’s residence, where they found her lying dead.
Another prosecution witness, Muhammad Ali, testified that the minor son of the deceased and the appellant had informed them that during the previous night, his father, Khursheed Ahmad, had assaulted his mother with a wooden plank. He also alleged that one Raees Pathan had slapped her, as a result of which she lost consciousness and subsequently died.
Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2026
