The prime suspect in the murder of Qandeel Baloch, Muhammad Wasim, has been sentenced to life imprisonment by a model court in Multan.
The court has acquitted the rest of the suspects nominated in the case, including religious scholar Mufti Abdul Qavi.
On Thursday, the court had reserved its verdict in the case. Today, Muhammad Wasim, was handed the life sentence in the murder of the social media star.
Though the decision has been hailed by many, some have criticised the acquittal of the rest of the suspects, especially Mufti Qavi. Rights activist Nighat Dad took to Twitter to say that an appeal against the acquittal should be filed at the earliest.
https://twitter.com/nighatdad/status/1177466524094750723?s=20
Some have opined that people who engaged in bullying and criticising the star on social media were also responsible for her murder. Comedian Shehzad Ghias expressed on Twitter that 'thousands' were responsible for the star's murder and that we needed to build 'kinder' online spaces.
https://twitter.com/Shehzad89/status/1177473609394114566?s=20
Another user, critical of the decision, stated that 'kangaroo courts' in the country were making a 'mockery' of themselves.
https://twitter.com/FaisalViewss/status/1177476874806517760?s=20
Qandeel had been strangled to death by her brother, Muhammad Wasim, in 2016. The brother had confessed to her murder and said that Qandeel had dishonoured the Baloch name with the content she used to post on social media.
In August, the Qandeel’s parents had submitted an affidavit in court saying they had forgiven the killers, a request later rejected by court.