A BRITISH woman facing the death penalty in Pakistan for allegedly ordering the murder of her husband claims she was beaten daily by police until she confessed.
The charred remains of Mohammad Farooq, 65, were discovered in a car at a rubbish dump in Pakistan‘s Punjab region, leading to his wife’s arrest.
He was allegedly killed by a 23-year-old man who worked for his family, and whom police claim was hired by her.
Yasmin Kausar, 64, who was detained for the murder in Rawalpindi in April, denies planning the hit on her husband of 23 years.
The mum from Leeds has spoken of her relief after being released on bail this week.
Kausar has maintained her innocence and her family launched a petition earlier this year calling for her to be freed.
READ MORE WORLD NEWS
Speaking for the first time since her release, she claims police officers forced her to confess with daily beatings.
“I was held at a police station for two weeks where I was hit every day,” she said. “They tried to force a confession, but I wouldn’t make a statement that wasn’t true.”
Her lawyer later applied for bail which was refused by the sessions court in Rawalpindi, but Justice Muhammad Tariq Nadeem granted bail after her appeal was taken to the high court in Lahore.
Ahead of her trial which starts this week, Ms Kausar has been holed up in a prison cell with four other women.
The jail wing housed 32 prisoners, some of whom had their children with them in their cells.
Describing her conditions, she said: “I wouldn’t wish it upon my worst enemy. I didn’t have any rights.
“I wasn’t able to speak to my family in the UK, there was no system in place to speak to them.”
Ms Kausar, who is diabetic, said she had to ask prison officers to give her her life-saving insulin, and guards would shut the toilets for hours and tell inmates to wet themselves.
“I thought because I’m a British citizen that the UK Embassy would come and get me out, but they didn’t,” she said.
Police in Pakistan say they believe Mr Farooq was strangled at his family’s home before his body was put in a car and driven to a rubbish dump 27 miles away where it was torched.
Ms Kausar said she thought somebody was playing a sick April Fool’s prank on her when she received the phone call about her husband’s death on April 1.
They tried to force a confession, but I wouldn’t make a statement that wasn’t true
Yasmin Kausar
She was in bed asleep when police burst into the home she was staying in at around 3.30am on April 4.
“They were banging on the doors and a policeman and woman came to arrest me,” she said.
“I was in shock as to why they were arresting me. They didn’t let me change my clothes and they were pushing and shoving me into the police car and wouldn’t let me get my jewellery or medicine.”
She told reporters: “I’m not good, I’m still upset. I’m upset about what’s happened to me, what they did to me and what they’re doing now.
“I’m devastated this has happened to me. I’ve not been able to grieve the loss of my husband.”
She went on: “I can’t come to terms with the fact he’s gone, he was my soul mate for over 25 years. It’s hard, it’s very hard.
“Throughout this ordeal, my brother has passed away, so I’ve suffered two losses.”
Her daughter Saima Bashir, 38, who flew out from the UK to support her mother, but has since had to return home to have cancer treatment, said she hoped her mother would get justice for herself and her late husband.
“We just hope the judge is fair and can see the evidence for what it is,” she said.
Read More on The Sun
A spokesperson for the UK Foreign Office told the Nottingham Post: “We are in contact with the local authorities in Pakistan following the death of a British man and are providing consular support to his family.”
Bradford West MP Naz Shah has written to Pakistan’s Prime Minister to raise concerns, highlighting the family’s concerns about the investigation’s credibility.
