A Pakistani boy’s hand was cut off after his employer “taught him a lesson” for demanding food and his salary, according to local media reports.
The boy, 13, was reportedly employed by a landlady, identified as Shafqat Bibi, on a salary of 3,000 Pakistani rupees (around $29) to feed cattle and work at her house in Punjab province.
Last week, the boy allegedly refused to do his job until the landlady fed and paid him, as he was destitute and starving, 24 News HD channel reported.
The landlady, however, was angered by his demands and allegedly put the boy’s hand into a fodder-cutting machine to “teach him a lesson.”
“Last week, Shafqat Bibi got furious with Irfan when he demanded [his] salary. She cut his right hand with a fodder-cutting machine to teach him a lesson that he demands salary but doesn’t complete his job of feeding the cattle,” the Hindustan Times quoted the boy’s mother as saying.
The boy was rushed to a local hospital after the incident, but doctors were unable to treat his badly injured hand.
The local police initially refused to register a case against the landlady, according to media reports. However, the boy’s mother turned to higher authorities to seek justice, and the incident has reportedly come to the attention of Punjab's chief minister, Shahbaz Sharif. The official has demanded a report from the police over the incident and their inaction, stating that the boy’s alleged mutilators should be dealt with according to the law.
A case was eventually filed against the landlady 10 days after the initial incident, and also named her brother and two other suspects. Shafqat Bibi was bailed, but her brother was arrested.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar took control of the case on Wednesday, demanding that the Punjab police submit a report on it within the next 48 hours.