Asma Rani murder: Victim's father pardons killer

• Elders of the killer and the slain woman's tribes meet during a jirga.
• Slain woman's father says he has accepted the apology of the killer and his family.
• Says he decided to forgive the killer "for the sake of Allah".

LAKKI MARWAT: The father of murdered medical student Asma Rani has pardoned her killer — Mujahidullah Afridi — after the convict was sentenced to death by a court in June.

A peace jirga was organised in the Serai Naurang tehsil of Lakki Marwat District which was attended by the elders of both Asma's and Mujahidullah's tribes.

The slain woman's father said that he has accepted the apology of the killer and his family, adding that he only wanted to prove that Mujahidullah was the killer. 

He said that he decided to forgive the killer "for the sake of Allah".

Asma Rani, a medical student from Kohat, was gunned down in 2018 by Mujahidullah Afridi after she refused to marry him. The convict had fled to Dubai after committing the murder but was later arrested by Interpol and handed over to Pakistani authorities in March 2018.

That same month, Asma’s family alleged they were being pressured to enter into an agreement regarding the murder case.

Asma’s brother and father said Mujahidullah enjoyed support from some influential people and requested a transfer of the case to Peshawar, Bannu or Dera Ismail Khan, saying the family was facing threats from those backing the suspects.

Back in June this year, a District and Sessions Court in Peshawar sentenced Mujahidullah to death for killing Asma. In a special hearing, District and Sessions Judge Ashfaq Taj announced a short order in which the accused was handed the death sentence and a fine of Rs300,000. 

Two other accused, Sadiqullah and Shahzeb, were acquitted. The special hearing took place inside Central Jail Peshawar.