The father accused of murdering his one-week-old daughter for want of a boy in Mianwali has been arrested, police said on Thursday.
The one-week-old girl was shot dead by her father because he had wanted a son. Police reported that the incident took place in Mohalla Noorpura in Punjab. The accused escaped the crime scene following the murder and police were actively searching for him.
The accused's name is Shahzaib Khan. He has been married to his wife, Mashal Fatima, for two years. Recalling the incident, Fatima told police, "Fuming in anger, he first beat me and cursed our daughter. Later, he took out a pistol from the cupboard and pumped bullets into her body".
She said that her husband had been desperate to have a first born son. "My husband was obsessed about having a boy, but no one in the family knew that he would commit such a gruesome crime -- killing his own daughter", she said.
The murder caused national and international outrage, with many terming the act as 'barbaric,' especially as the incident took place on the eve of International Women's Day, when many Pakistani women were preparing to head to the streets to call for the rights of women and girls.
Journalist Maryam Nawaz said, "This women day is saddest, as the disturbing yet most disheartening news of a little angel shot dead by her own father, merely just for being a female child".
https://twitter.com/maryamnawazkhan/status/1500945161454592001
The day after news of the murder broke, another man from Mianwali proudly shared a photo with his two daughters, saying "My daughters, my life [and] proud to be a father".
https://twitter.com/SajidKhanDaha13/status/1500954689894236164
Similar cases of familicide are not uncommon in Pakistan. Earlier this year, a father reportedly smothered to death his six-year-old daughter to spite his wife. His wife had threatened divorce, after which her husband decided to kill their daughter out of resentment.
Violence against women is even more prevalent. In Punjab, police reported 2,439 women were raped, 9,529 were kidnapped, and 90 women were killed on the name of ‘honour’ from July to December 2021.
Historically, daughters have often been considered an economic burden for South Asian households. A 2022 study by the London School of Economics found that couples avoided contraceptive methods and would have multiple children in an effort to bear a son. An earlier study found that the mothers of sons are typically more involved in household decisions, than mothers of only daughters.
The one-week-old girl was shot dead by her father because he had wanted a son. Police reported that the incident took place in Mohalla Noorpura in Punjab. The accused escaped the crime scene following the murder and police were actively searching for him.
The accused's name is Shahzaib Khan. He has been married to his wife, Mashal Fatima, for two years. Recalling the incident, Fatima told police, "Fuming in anger, he first beat me and cursed our daughter. Later, he took out a pistol from the cupboard and pumped bullets into her body".
She said that her husband had been desperate to have a first born son. "My husband was obsessed about having a boy, but no one in the family knew that he would commit such a gruesome crime -- killing his own daughter", she said.
The murder caused national and international outrage, with many terming the act as 'barbaric,' especially as the incident took place on the eve of International Women's Day, when many Pakistani women were preparing to head to the streets to call for the rights of women and girls.
Journalist Maryam Nawaz said, "This women day is saddest, as the disturbing yet most disheartening news of a little angel shot dead by her own father, merely just for being a female child".
https://twitter.com/maryamnawazkhan/status/1500945161454592001
The day after news of the murder broke, another man from Mianwali proudly shared a photo with his two daughters, saying "My daughters, my life [and] proud to be a father".
https://twitter.com/SajidKhanDaha13/status/1500954689894236164
Similar cases of familicide are not uncommon in Pakistan. Earlier this year, a father reportedly smothered to death his six-year-old daughter to spite his wife. His wife had threatened divorce, after which her husband decided to kill their daughter out of resentment.
Violence against women is even more prevalent. In Punjab, police reported 2,439 women were raped, 9,529 were kidnapped, and 90 women were killed on the name of ‘honour’ from July to December 2021.
Historically, daughters have often been considered an economic burden for South Asian households. A 2022 study by the London School of Economics found that couples avoided contraceptive methods and would have multiple children in an effort to bear a son. An earlier study found that the mothers of sons are typically more involved in household decisions, than mothers of only daughters.