Chaudhry Shahid refuses to recognise his daughter Samia’s second spouse
Chaudhry Shahid, the father of Samia Shahid, a British woman of Pakistani origin who was found dead inside her family home in Jhelum earlier this month, on Sunday declined to recognise her second husband before a high-level investigation committee formed last week on the orders of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to probe the “honour” killing.
The three-member committee headed by Punjab DIG Abu Bakar Khuda Bakhsh visited the scene of the tragedy in Jhelum and penned down statements by prime suspect, Samia’s first husband, Chaudhary Shakeel and her father.
The committee also summoned Samia’s second husband Syed Mukhtar Kazam, who had accused his wife’s family of killing her for converting to Shia faith, and recorded his statement.
Chaudhary Shahid refused to recognise Mukhtar Kazam in front of the committee. He also claimed that his daughter had committed suicide.
The committee will on Monday record statement of the doctor who had carried out Samia’s post-mortem.
The investigative team also analysed the police’s initial report on the case. A written report on the probe will be presented to CM Punjab.
No conclusive investigation has yet been completed by the Jhelum police even after 11 days following the mysterious alleged honour killing of 27-year-old Samia.
Samia Shahid married Mukhtar Kazam less than two years ago against her family’s wishes and went to live with his family in Dubai.
This month Samia, originally from Bradford, went to visit her father in a village called “Poteh” near Dina on the 14th of July. Her family, who are also British nationals, were in Pakistan following a bereavement within the family.
Earlier, sources close to the case said that police showed negligence in the initial investigation of the murder probe. The case, as a result, is getting complicated with pressure mounting on the Pakistan government by authorities in the United Kingdom, they added.
It took four days for the police to register an FIR of the incident. It is understood that after marrying Mukhtar Kazam, the couple had faced death threats. After Samia’s death in mysterious circumstances, her husband was told she died of a heart attack but the parents lodged a statement saying she committed suicide.
