On Monday, authorities reported that a young woman was kidnapped and sexually assaulted by a group of individuals in the city.
However, the woman was arrested and a case was registered at the Phulgran police station four days after the incident. The case was filed under section 375A (gang rape) and 109 (punishment of abetment if the act abetted committed in consequence and where no express provision is made for its punishment), according to the FIR.
The incident occurred on May 1 when the girl left her house in Phulgran to buy milk at around 6:30pm. However, she did not return home. Concerned, her mother began searching for her and was informed by children playing in the street that a woman from the neighborhood had taken her away in a black car.
At approximately 8:30pm, the mother contacted the police helpline and they promptly arrived at the scene, as stated in the FIR. Subsequently, the police advised her to visit the police station the following day to file a formal complaint.
A spokesperson has announced that the woman implicated in the abduction has been apprehended, and the officials responsible will be subjected to departmental action due to their negligence.
The following morning, at approximately 9am, the proprietor of a laundry establishment transported the girl to her residence on a motorcycle and informed the mother that a woman and a man had left her at his shop.
Upon questioning, the girl informed her mother that a woman from the neighborhood had requested her company to a market to purchase fresh produce in her vehicle.
Nevertheless, the woman drove her to a residence where another woman, two girls, and three boys were already present, as stated in the FIR. The two women threatened her, confined her in a room with the three boys who then subjected her to gang rape, and departed the premises at 1am.
Subsequently, the woman who had taken her to the residence left the girl at the laundry shop where she remained until 9am when the owner arrived and brought her back home.
The mother accompanied the girl to the police station on May 2, but was requested to return the next day, as stated in the FIR. She returned on May 3 to file a complaint, seeking justice.
According to a police official interviewed by Dawn, the complaint was left unattended in the police station for a day, and on May 4, the FIR was finally registered. When asked about the delay in registering the case, Police spokesman Taqi Jawad informed Dawn that the Subdivisional Police Officer (SDPO) Bhara Kahu had taken disciplinary action against the officials responsible for the negligence.
Furthermore, he mentioned, “The woman who abducted the girl has been apprehended and is currently in jail on judicial remand.”
