Controversial 2011 video: FIR registered against killing of five girls in Kohistan

MANSEHRA: The Kolai-Palas Police on Wednesday lodged the first information report (FIR) about five girls allegedly killed by their families after being seen in a controversial video in 2011.

“We lodged the FIR on the orders of the Supreme Court and initiated an investigation to ascertain the whereabouts of the five missing girls,” Iftikhar Khan, District Police Officer of Kolai-Palas, told reporters.

The video of five girls, who were seen clapping during a dance by some men at an undisclosed place, had gone viral on social media in 2011.

Afzal Kohistani, whose three brothers shown in the video were killed, had moved the Supreme Court seeking registration of the FIR. The apex court had constituted the judicial commission headed by the district and sessions judge of Kohistan. It had said in its findings that the girls seen in the video were not produced before the commission.

The apex court in light of the commission’s findings ordered the Kohistan Police to lodge the FIR of the incident.

District Police Officer Iftikhar Ahmad said that FIR was lodged under Section 364 of the Pakistan Penal Code. “If we are unable to find the missing girls, we would include Section 302 of the Criminal Procedure Code in the FIR and make efforts to arrest the suspects,” he said.

Since the 2011 incident, the Supreme Court had constituted two separate judicial commissions. One that was recently constituted contradicted the findings of the previous one, which was constituted soon after the incident. Human and women rights’ bodies had highlighted the issue and demanded recovery of the missing girls and action against the accused.