Viral footage captures harassment incident as police investigate alleged attack at music academy
Police vehicles are parked outside the District Headquarters Hospital in Muzaffargarh, Punjab on July 29, 2015. Photo: Reuters
CCTV and mobile phone videos have emerged showing a woman being harassed by a large crowd outside a music academy in Nazimabad No 3, prompting the police to register a criminal case and launch an investigation into the incident.
The videos, which emerged days after the July 9 incident, show the woman trying to protect herself from an aggressive mob by holding a chair in front of her as dozens of people surround and confront her near a chai dhaba.
According to police, the woman, identified as Ishrat Malik, was stopped and harassed when she returned home after attending classes at the music academy.
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The incident reportedly began when residents stormed the academy, accusing it of hosting “immoral activities”. The claims have not been independently verified. An FIR has been registered on the complaint of Shakir Ali, who runs the academy.
In his complaint, Ali said he runs an art academy where students are taught singing and qawwali. He claimed that on July 9, a man identified as Azmat Shah, who he claimed appeared to be under the influence of drugs, arrived at the academy with two companions and tried to force his way inside.
According to the FIR, Ali denied them entry due to their condition, after which the suspects allegedly entered the premises by force. He claimed that one of the men produced a firearm, while about 10 more people later joined them vandalizing the academy, assaulting the staff and issuing threats that the institution would not be allowed to function.
The complainant further alleged that the attackers physically assaulted him causing injuries and also harassed his wife Huma by pulling her clothes. He accused the group of similarly harassing female students and outraging their modesty.
The FIR states that a female student, later identified as Ishrat Malik, fled the academy in panic. According to the complaint, the main suspect allegedly gathered several people from the neighborhood, after which a crowd of nearly 200 people chased the woman through the streets and allegedly tried to assault and harass her before she took refuge in a nearby apartment building. The police were called to the scene via the emergency telephone.
The Nazimabad SHO said the academy conducts classes in qawwali and singing and no complaints had been lodged with the police earlier regarding its activities before the incident. He confirmed that the police have registered a case of harassment of the woman and the attack on the academy. No arrests have yet been announced.
