Natasha to remain behind bars as court rejects her bail petition in drug case

A city court in Karachi on Monday rejected the bail petition of Natasha Danish, the prime suspect in the Karsaz accident case, in a drug case.

The court rejected the petition citing her intoxicated driving and lack of justification for bail.

"Despite belonging to an elite family, Natasha drove the car in a state of intoxication. Driving a car under the influence and without licence is a crime. Two citizens had lost their lives due to Natasha's crime," the court said.

Despite being granted bail in the Karsaz accident case, Natasha remains in jail due to the drug case. 

On September 6, the additional district and sessions court east in the port city approved the bail petition of Natasha in the high-profile accident case after the heirs of the victims, Imran Arif and Amina Arif, reached a settlement with the suspect and pardoned her.

The court granted bail against surety bonds of Rs100,000 after the heirs of the victims, Imran Arif and Amina Arif, reached a settlement with Natasha and pardoned her.

Following the agreement, sources claimed that Natasha's family had paid over Rs5.5 crore as 'diyat' (blood money) to Amina's family through a pay order. 

However, Imtiaz Arif, the victim's brother, refuted these claims in an interview with BBC.

"We have forgiven Natasha for Allah's sake and without any blood money," he said.

"Natasha's family came to my sister-in-law's house to grief over the matter where they apologised too [for Natasha's crime].

“My sister-in-law has a kind and generous heart, she forgave Natasha."

He further explained that the family chose the option of Fi Sabilillah (forgiveness for the sake of Allah) over Qisas (retaliation) or Diyat (blood money).

Background of the case:

The accused driver, Natasha Danish Iqbal, allegedly a member of the prominent Gul Ahmed family, was involved in a car accident on August 19 that resulted in the tragic deaths of two persons and left four others injured.

In the accident, Amna Arif, along with her father, lost her life when a speeding car driven by the suspect lost control and rammed into four motorcycles and two cars on Karsaz Road.

Four others were injured in the accident, out of which one was critically injured.

Abdus Salam, one of the four victims injured, was put on a ventilator after his condition deteriorated due to his injuries, according to family sources.

Following the incident, several Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) footage emerged in which the suspect was seen committing the crime.

Natasha was arrested by the police from the crime scene and was sent to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC) for a medical checkup.

According to sources, the woman was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

The suspect’s lawyer, Amir Mansoob, said his client was a psychiatric patient and had been under treatment for her condition for five years.

Natasha's counsel told the media that his client had no memory of the incident and was "not in the right frame of mind".

In response, the reporters asked why the family allowed the suspect to drive a car in such "a severe mental condition".

The lawyer claimed the family was unaware that Natasha had taken the car as "they had imposed restrictions on her due to her mental condition".

However, she was declared mentally fit by the psychiatrist of JPMC.

Later, the City Court in the port city sent Natasha to jail on a 14-day judicial remand on August 21.

On August 31, she was booked in another case for drug use. The case was registered at the Bahadurabad police station after the presence of banned drugs was confirmed in the urine and blood samples of the accused.

However, on September 2, the suspect was granted permission to appear in the court hearing via video link due to security reasons.

On August 4, she also filed a bail plea in the court citing her history of mental health issues and previous treatments from multiple psychiatrists. 

Later, the court issued notices to the relevant parties regarding her bail application.