A preliminary medical report of a nine-year-old girl Fatima Farriro, who had been found dead at the mansion of an influential local religious personality in Ranipur earlier this week, had been raped and subjected to brutal physical assault.
The medical report, which surfaced on Sunday, a day after her body was exhumed, concluded that she had been subjected to both physical and sexual assault, with her body heavily bruised with red and blue colouration, especially her head, arms and back while her hands, legs and knees were blackish.
A team of doctors from the Peoples Medical Center in Nawabshah led the post-mortem examination of the exhumed body of the child maid. In their report, they stated that the child maid was subjected to sexual assault and rape while a final report is expected to be submitted soon, said Khairpur SPP Mir Rohal Khan Khoso.
The report added that doctors had obtained samples from the girl's body, including vaginal swabs, for DNA testing and serology against those who live at the mansion, including the owner, Pir Asad Shah.
SSP Khoso said that they would check the DNA samples obtained from the girl's body against those obtained from the accused.
He further said that the medical team had found heavy bruise marks on the child's body, indicating severe torture had been inflicted on the deceased.
Earlier in the week, Fatima, a ten-year-old domestic maid, had died under mysterious circumstances at the mansion of an influential religious personality Pir Asad Shah in Ranipur tehsil of Khairpur district of Sindh.
The child was subsequently buried without undergoing an autopsy, nor did the police issue a medical certificate, even though she had been found dead under mysterious circumstances. A court had subsequently ordered the exhumation of her body and to conduct an autopsy while local cops believed to be facilitators in the crime were suspended together with medical officers who gave a fake health certificate.
The girl's body was exhumed from the Muhammad Ali Farriro graveyard in Naushero Feroze under the supervision of Judicial Magistrate Sobhodehro on Saturday.
Thorough, fair investigation
Meanwhile, Sukkur DIG Javed Jaskani has said that the police will conduct a thorough, fair and transparent investigation into the incident, adding that they were taking measures to rescue any other children who may be working as bonded labourers at Pir Asad Shah's mansion.
Moreover, the Ranipur Police have set up a picket outside Pir Asad Shah's mansion following orders from Khairpur SSP. The police, assisted by doctors, are collecting DNA samples from all male members living on the property to widen the scope of the investigation.
Separately, sources claimed that the parents of the deceased were threatened with dire consequences by the accused's family.
Protest
On Sunday, the civil society in Ranipur staged a loud protest demanding justice for Fatima.
The protesters said that Peers and feudal lords had destroyed Sindh and were involved in heinous crimes.
They called the incident the "height of inhumanness".
Meanwhile, lawyers from Khairpur district and nearby Gambat town announced to boycott court proceedings across the district on Monday to protest against the horrendous incident.
Advocate Touqeer Kalwar stated that in the wake of the medical report, the court must include Section 376 (punishment of rape) in the final police report. He further said that facilitators of this incident should also be booked.