Judicial remand of Mufti Qavi extended by six days

MULTAN: A sessions’ court judge on Tuesday extended Mufti Abdul Qavi’s judicial remand by six more days after he appeared before the court in the proceedings of the Qandeel Baloch murder case.

This order came a day after his bail application was rejected.

Police have been asked by the court to submit a charge-sheet in the case on November 13.

Qavi, a suspect in the murder case told the police of his ties with the person who drove the murder suspects and the owner of the house where the social media star had lived.

According to police, Qavi told officials that the owner and driver of the vehicle which brought Qandeel’s murder suspects from DG Khan to Multan and then brought them back was his cousin Abdul Basit.

Moreover, Qavi told police during investigation that the house in Multan where Qandeel resided was also owned by his close acquaintance Mohammad Nawaz.

Qandeel’s brother Waseem and his cousin Haq Nawaz are in custody of the police whereas Qavi’s cousin Abdul Basit is a nominated suspect in the case and currently out on a bail.

Model Qandeel Baloch, who rose to fame for her provocative selfies that polarised Pakistan, was strangled in July by her brother Muhammad Waseem for “bringing shame on the family”. He had confessed to his crime in a press conference after his arrest.

Prior to her death, Baloch, whose real name was Fauzia Azeem, was concerned about her safety and had appealed to the Interior Ministry to provide her with security.

No security was provided and the Interior Ministry has not commented on her death.

In his confession, Waseem claimed she had brought shame on the family and confessed to his crime in a press conference after his arrest. Later, a polygraph revealed that Waseem had help from his cousin Haq Nawaz and few others.

Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Yousaf suspended Mufti Qavi’s membership of Ruet-e-Hilal Committee after Baloch released pictures of herself with the cleric in a hotel room weeks before her murder, wearing his hat and pouting.

She had accused him of inappropriate behaviour.

“I thought I would expose him as he is in reality,” she told AFP at the time, adding: “He is a different person alone and different when he has his followers around him.”

She had faced frequent abuse and death threats.

The ‘honour-killing’ of Qandeel Baloch had sent shockwaves across the country and triggered an outpouring of grief on social media.