FAISALABAD:
A total of 97 women and girls were gang-raped across Faisalabad district during the first 11 months of this year, yet not a single accused was convicted in court, official statistics show. The number of gang rape cases registered in 2024 was 80.
During the current year, 97 cases of gang-rape were reported in Faisalabad district.
Of these, 12 cases were registered in Lyallpur Town, 23 in Iqbal Town Division, 27 in Madina Town Division, 15 in Jaranwala Division and 20 in Saddar Division.
Out of 297 accused named in these cases, the police were able to arrest 145 people, while 66 suspects were found innocent.
However, nine cases were dismissed, 10 remain under investigation and 15 are still pending due to delays in DNA sampling.
In one of the recent incidents, Mohammad Riaz, a resident of 204-RB, reported that his 22-year-old daughter had been living with Ijaz Ali of 122-JB in Noor Pur due to their personal relationship.
Riaz stated in his complaint that Ijaz would take his daughter to various dance parties.
On November 22, Riaz’s friend, Ameer Hamza, along with his wife, Zobia Mushtaq, took her to a house near Al-Noor Executive Main Gate, where she was served breakfast and lassi.
According to the FIR, the lassie made her pass out after which Ameer Hamza and his co-conspirators allegedly gang-raped her one by one.
The accused later abandoned her near a saloon and fled.
Madina Town police registered a gang-rape case under Section 375-A and on the instructions of town police officer Sahibzada Bilal Umar, SHO Adeel Akram Cheema conducted raids and arrested all three accused.
Police officials said DNA tests on victims and suspects were being conducted before making claims in court. Despite these efforts, however, no suspect has been convicted in a gang-rape case this year.
Officials attribute the delays to the slow processing of DNA reports, which should ideally be issued within three months, but often take up to six months, causing significant setbacks in prosecutions.
Sources revealed that 10 cases remain under investigation, nine were dismissed after DNA reports failed to confirm gang-rape and 15 cases are still pending because DNA samples were not collected in time.
SSP Investigation Nasir Mehmood Bajwa said a dedicated SSIO unit has been established in the district to handle gang-rape cases and ensure that all cases are resolved strictly on merit.
He stated that out of the cases registered this year, 10 have been rejected, while the appeals in 34 cases have been submitted to the courts.
In these cases, 66 suspects were found innocent, he added, assuring that evidence in all remaining cases is being gathered and will be concluded soon.
Speaking about the increasing number of gang-rape incidents in the district, senior advocate Owais Manawar Randhawa, Advocate High Court, said that since women officers were inducted in the SSIO unit, such cases have increased.
On the other hand, HRCP complaint officer Anila Ashraf said a total of 1,042 gang-rape cases were registered this year across Punjab, including 97 cases in Faisalabad district.
