Police not yet done with Rimsha

As the lawyer of Rimsha Masih struggles to get bail for the juvenile Christian girl accused of blasphemy, the police obtained a 14-day extension in the judicial remand from the district magistrate on Friday.
Blindfolded with a sheet of white cloth covering her head and face, Rimsha was brought in the court of Civil Judge Anamullah amid tight security. An armored police van, escorted by six other police vans, carried the 14-year-old Rimsha from Adyala Jail to the court.
In the court, police said it needed more time to complete interrogation. Accepting the request, the judge gave a 14-day extension in the remand of the juvenile girl.
“Since we are covering all aspects of the case, we need more time to complete investigation. That’s why we requested the court for an extension in Rimsha’s remand. And the court accepted our request,” Sub Inspector Munir Jaffri, who is investigating the case, told Pakistan Today. He said the court had directed the police to complete the challan of the case in the least number of days.
Rimsha was arrested on August 16 after her neighbor accused her of burning pages from a Noorani Qaeda in the Maira Jaffar area in G-12, Islamabad. Ramna Police registered a case against her under Blasphemy Law and sent her to jail. On Friday, after the expiry of the previous remand, police produced her before the civil judge and obtained an extension. Before bringing the girl to the court, police cordoned off the surrounding area, and denied entry to all unauthorized persons. Even Rimsha’s close relatives were not present in the court.
On Saturday (today), a Sessions judge, will hear Rimsha’s bail plea. The district magistrate will produce a medical board’s report to ascertain Rimsha’s age. The board certified that Rimsha was 14 years old.
In the hearing on August 29, Rimsha’s lawyer produced the report, which suggested that the accused girl was a juvenile.
The lawyer pleaded for bail on the basis of that report, which certified that the accused girl was not an adult, and was only 14 years old. However, the accuser’s lawyer had objected to the authenticity of the medical report. Upon this, the court had adjourned the hearing until September 1 (today) while directing the district magistrate to clarify the medical report.