Lahore Court Sentences Husband to Death in Honour-Killing Case

Overview

• A Lahore sessions court sentenced Muhammad Azam to death and fined him PKR 300,000 for slitting his wife's throat in a so‑called honour killing.
• Pakistani law treats honour killings as homicide, yet sentences can be eased if relatives pardon the killer, which often shields family offenders.
• Rights groups report the practice is widespread, with HRCP logging over 470 cases in 2021 and activists estimating about 1,000 women murdered each year.
• Convictions remain scarce, with 2024 reporting citing 22 cases in Islamabad and 143 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with none secured and 225 in Punjab with only two.
• Advocates call for fast‑track courts, stricter enforcement, police accountability and public education to counter norms that link family honour to control over women's lives.