Slug: hrcp-demands-probe-waseem-abbas-extrajudicial-killing
Category: National
Focus keyphrase: HRCP Waseem Abbas probe extrajudicial killing
SEO title: HRCP Demands Probe Into Waseem Abbas Killing
Meta description: The HRCP has demanded an independent probe into the murder of 15-year-old Waseem Abbas and the death of the suspect in an alleged police encounter.
Tags: HRCP, Waseem Abbas, extrajudicial killing, Multan, police encounter, child labour, orphanages, due process
Original element: verified update to our own live coverage — our report on the accused’s death in the CCD encounter (linked) now gains two major developments: the HRCP’s demand for an independent probe and the Bonded Labour Liberation Front’s child-labour allegations against 52 unregistered orphanages.
HRCP Demands Independent Probe Into Waseem Abbas Case, Flags ‘Extrajudicial Killing’
LAHORE: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Wednesday expressed concern over the alleged murder of 15-year-old Waseem Abbas in Multan and the death of the accused in an alleged police encounter, calling for an independent, transparent investigation.
The suspect, Tauqeer Nazir, had allegedly chased Abbas in his car after a dispute over work and run him over in a private housing society in Multan on October 19. Arrested the next day, he was handed over to police on a four-day physical remand by a judicial magistrate. Later on Wednesday, police said the suspect fled custody and was then killed by his accomplices when a police party tried to re-arrest him.
Extrajudicial killings ‘violate due process’
Abbas was reportedly chased and run over by his employer, the HRCP said. The death of the accused in an alleged police encounter has raised serious questions about the state’s approach to protecting human life and upholding legal safeguards.
The commission said extrajudicial killings violate the right to due process and deprive victims and their families of the opportunity to establish the truth and seek justice. It added that treating such killings as an acceptable means of controlling crime suggests vengeance without accountability is being prioritised over justice.
The HRCP called for an independent and transparent investigation into the case and urged the authorities to bring an end to extrajudicial killings in all forms.
The commission’s intervention comes as the superior courts take an increasingly active role in rights-related cases. The Supreme Court upheld bail in the Chauntra case this week and issued show-cause notices to the KP prisons chief over a convict’s early release, while the Federal Constitutional Court ruled minor offences cannot bar government jobs.
The case against Nazir
The first information report, registered on Monday, named Nazir and Amjad Ali as suspects and invoked Sections 302 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code, relating to murder and acts done by several persons in furtherance of their common intention. It alleged that the two men pursued Abbas in a car and deliberately ran him over, causing fatal head injuries.
According to the FIR, Sub-Inspector Liaquat Ali Bhatti was on patrol in Royal Orchard when Mukhtiar Ahmed told police that his cousin Abbas had been working as an electrician for the suspects, who had allegedly subjected him to violence and threatened to kill him.
The report stated that Abbas had fled to a neighbouring street to escape the alleged abuse while the two suspects pursued him in a vehicle. Police said they saw Abbas running in fear, followed by a Honda vehicle bearing registration number BVE-474.
The FIR alleged that the suspects ran the vehicle over Abbas with the intention of killing him. His head struck a pillar at a house gate, crushing his skull. He died at the scene. Two residents, Saqlain Raza and Syed Naseem Abbas, were named as witnesses.
Nazir was apprehended at the scene, while Ali escaped. Police took the vehicle into custody as evidence. Mukhtiar told police that Abbas wanted to leave the job because of the alleged violence and feared for his safety, and that the suspects pursued him over that decision and acted in concert to kill him.
Bonded Labour Liberation Front alleges child-labour angle
Separately, the Bonded Labour Liberation Front Pakistan demanded an investigation into Abbas’s death and action against unregistered orphanages allegedly involved in the exploitation of children.
According to a press release by the organisation’s president, Syeda Ghulam Fatima Gilani, Abbas was living at an orphanage in Multan and had been sent to work at a workshop, where he died after being run over. The organisation termed the incident a killing rather than an accident and called for legal action against those responsible.
It alleged that more than 52 unregistered orphanages across Punjab were sending children to brick kilns and workshops for labour, and accused Multan’s labour officer and a Child Protection and Welfare Bureau official of negligence.
It called for action against unregistered orphanages and registered institutions involved in child exploitation, monthly surprise inspections of all orphanages, and an online record of resident children. It also urged the Lahore High Court to take notice.
“Wasim should have been in school, not at a workshop,” Gilani said, warning that the organisation would approach the High Court if no action was taken within seven days.
An update to our earlier report
Feature Pakistan earlier reported that the man accused of running over the Multan teenager was killed in a CCD encounter. Wednesday’s developments add a significant new layer to that story: the HRCP’s intervention puts the alleged extrajudicial killing under national scrutiny, while the child-labour allegations widen the case beyond a single crime into questions about how orphanages across Punjab are supervised.
The Express Tribune reported the HRCP’s demand on Wednesday night. The call for an independent investigation now pressures Punjab authorities to establish exactly how the prime suspect died while in the system.
