CJP takes suo moto cognizance of Khadija Siddiqui stabbing case

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Tuesday took a suo moto cognizance of the recent acquittal of law student Shah Hussain earlier accused of stabbing Khadija Siddiqui several times.

The victim had appealed to Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar to take notice of the LHC verdict and hear her case directly.

This comes after a massive outrage on social media over the decision of the Lahore High Court to acquit Hussain who had stabbed Siddiqui at least 23 times in 2016.

The CJP is to hear the case on June 10 at the SC Lahore registry and has summoned all the record of the case from the Lahore High Court (LHC), as reported by the Geo News.

Earlier reacting to the acquittal, Siddiqui said justice has been butchered.

She took to her Twitter account to say, “Inna lilahi wa ina ilahi rajioon! (Justice butchered. Shah Hussain acquitted!).”

Further, #Justiceforkhadija was trending the entire day as several others supported Khadija and some also stated various findings reported by the investigation agencies.

Siddiqui was attacked by Shah Hussain on May 3, 2016, near Shimla Hill, where she, along with her driver, had gone to pick up her younger sister from school.

Both sisters were about to get into their car when the helmet-wearing Siddiqui attacked Khadija with a knife and stabbed her 23 times, leaving her critically injured.

On July 29, 2017, a court in the provincial capital of Punjab sentenced the main accused, Shah Hussain, for stabbing Siddiqui. The attacker had managed to flee from the scene of the crime but was captured on a mobile camera by an eyewitness.

Siddiqui was saved by her driver, who had tried to overpower the attacker, forcing him to flee from the scene on May 3, 2016. (ANI)