FAISALABAD: Thirteen-year-old Aleeza is in bed nursing her broken nasal bone. Near to her sit Raheela, 13, Samina, 13, Nusrat, 30, Allah Mafi, 25, Rimsha, 12, and Hafeezan Bibi, 40.

They are swathed in bandages on arms and legs and their faces, legs and backs are bruised. They say that seven women and two men of their two families were tortured by Saddar police officials and some accompanying private people on Aug 16 in their house in Chak 235-RB.

A medical examination confirmed torture on seven people, of them four are teenage girls.

City Police Officer (CPO) Afzaal Kausar said the families had occupied the house illegally, however, action would be taken against the policemen who subjected females to torture.

Reports, prepared by a medical board of the Faisalabad District Headquarters Hospital, read that Raheela, Samina, Nusrat, Allah Mafi, Rimsha, Hafeezan and Aleeza had torture marks on their arms, legs and back.

The medical examination was conducted on the orders of a judicial magistrate on a plea by Muhammad Saleem seeking action against police.

Mr Saleem also submitted an application to the CPO office saying that on Aug 16, the Saddar police, led by Station House Officer Farooq Ranjah, and some private people subjected his women to torture and stole gold ornaments and other household items during the raid.

Among the tortured people include Raheela, Nusrat, Allah Muafi (nieces of Saleem), Samina (Nusrat’s daughter), Hafeezan (Saleem’s sister), Hafeeza (Saleem’s cousin) and Aleeza and Rimsha (Riaz’s daughter).

He alleged the raiding officials locked the family in a room and also set a blaze some house items. Police also dragged some guest women and bundled them into a van, he added.

He said the people also went to the shop of his nephew, Riaz, tortured him and looted Rs150,000 from the shop.

He said police and private people also resorted to aerial firing which frightened the villagers who locked themselves in their houses.

When he approached them for a case against the raiding officials, police, however, registered a case against the family.

Nawaz, nephew of Saleem, told Dawn they moved a judicial magistrate court seeking directions for the police to register a case, and on the court intervention, a medical examination was conducted. He said the police had broken surveillance cameras at the house.

He said Altaf and Riaz were also brutally tortured by the police and both were still in hospital.

He said police had brought a mason and construction labourers with them, and also built a wall there, which was done to please a ruling party leader.

The CPO said police were trying to get the house retrieved on the complaint of Salamat, whom he called the actual owner.

He said Salamat had documents to prove the ownership of the house.

He said land grabbing would not be allowed, however, policemen had been directed to refrain from misusing their authority.

Nawaz also shows documents to prove his legal hold of the house.

He says they showed the documents to police but in vain.

The judicial magistrate will hear the case on Aug 27.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2016