For those who may not remember: Khadija Siddiqi, a law student from Lahore, was stabbed 23 times, more than a year ago.
The Girl Who Was Stabbed 23 Times By Her Classmate Is Still Seeking Justicehttps://t.co/LgpTcKr6p3@shazbkhanzdaGEO @GeoASKKS
— Siasat.pk (@siasatpk) May 17, 2017
Khadija Siddiqi became a victim of this gruesome incident in broad daylight. She happened to be picking up her sister from school. While the incident itself was horrific, the legal system also made it worse by being unhelpful.
As news of the incident spread, pictures of the attacker were circulated
This is Shah Hussain who is blackmailing khadija w her personal life pictures.Lets stand with khadija n get her JUSTICE #KhadijaTheFighter pic.twitter.com/AtxTMTeCrG
— Hassan Niazi (@HniaziISF) July 13, 2017
Moreover, many felt that our legal system needed to make an example of the incident
Find this guy and make an example out of him! https://t.co/9o07l7klqJ
— Mahira Khan (@TheMahiraKhan) May 18, 2017
Eventually, Khadija’s case was pushed into court. However, the unfolding of the proceedings in court only highlighted why countless women are afraid to speak up.
Mohammad Jibran Nasir, who has constantly been championing for Khadija, took to Twitter to highlight the ‘cheap tactics’ that were used in court
As #Khadija's cross begins today defence counsel stoop to cheap tactics to malign her showing images which Khadija claims are photoshopped
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 13, 2017
The blatant hypocrisy that exists within our society was highlighted
Silence for sake of few votes by Senior Bar members who otherwise champion women rights and democracy will remain a tragic reality.
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 13, 2017
Khadija Siddiqi being questioned about her virginity in an attempt to murder case was also brought to light
Case is of attempt to murder but defence counsel raising ques about #Khadija's virginity. Trying to harrass/scare her but she is a fighter.
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 13, 2017
However, no matter how humiliating it was, Khadija remained undeterred
Khadija did not back down from being cross examined by a vile disgusting excuse of a lawyer. She stood her ground #KhadijaTheFighter
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 13, 2017
Moreover, she displayed immense strength and courage
#Khadija isnt just taking on a broken criminal justice system but also patriarchal traditions which define the role of women in our society
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 13, 2017
And, at the end of it all, she remained resilient, despite every attempt to break her spirit
#Khadija cross examination ended today. She was firm in her answers. Judge also didnt allow defense to make personal pics part of case file
— M. Jibran Nasir (@MJibranNasir) July 14, 2017
In the following video, Khadija’s lawyer is seen talking about the entire ordeal
Everything that has happened to Khadija has been nothing short of traumatic.
To see her standing up to men going out of their way to break her in every way possible is remarkable. If there’s anything that this case has highlighted, it would be the reinforcement of why women don’t come forward more often. A young girl gets stabbed in broad daylight. She walks into court to seek justice, only to have her character ripped apart, bit by bit. And then we wonder why women stay silent. Are we not the ones failing our women?
Fortunately, Khadija has many well-wishers
We stand with #Khadija Stay strong.
— Qaisar Javed (@iamQaisarJaved) July 13, 2017
There are plenty of people who support her wholeheartedly
God bless her with strength and fortitude!
— Murtaza Shibli (@murtaza_shibli) July 14, 2017
There are also people who are asking all the right questions
Why judge is letting this shit show played by defence judge?
— TheHUMANIST (@fawadjamali1) July 14, 2017
Some of the questions also highlight the ridiculousness of making a case for the attacker
What case are they making? How are they trying to defend this attempted murder?
— serialchiller (@serialchiller) July 14, 2017
And people are calling out the justice system for – well – failing to exact justice
Are judges blind to bullying tactics by lawyers. Why are such criminals not kicked out of the profession? Our courts stink like cesspools
— Imran Ahmed (@ImranAKisan) July 13, 2017
While it’s great that Khadija has support, what she needs is justice. Additionally, we, as a country, need justice.
Be it to scare every knife-wielding man who thinks he has the power to ruin a life or to give hope to any other unfortunate Khadija who may be too scared to speak up, justice needs to be served. Because if Khadija loses, we lose as a nation. If the justice system fails her, we fail her. Moreover, we fail any other girl who may be going through the exact same thing. And, simply put: that is a burden that none of us have the ability to shoulder.