BAHAWALNAGAR: Alleged rape victims have to move courts to get their cases registered here in Bahawalnagar.

The lapse of time often benefits the suspects as the evidence is hard to find by the time the case is registered.

In one such incident, the Haroonabad City police registered a rape case on Nov 24 on the order of the court, whereas the alleged gang-rape was committed on July 22. The alleged victim, of 48/3R, was raped by six people.

In another incident, Faqirwali police registered a gang-rape case on Nov 24 on the order of the court.

The complainant, a married woman of Chak 163/7R, was allegedly gang-raped by four people.

Haroonabad Deputy Superintendent of Police Nawazish Bukhari said he was unaware of the situation.

The Fort Abbas police also registered a rape case against four people on Nov 24 whereas the complainant had approached police for the case on Aug 8.

The complainant, of Chak 282/HR, stated the suspects had kidnapped and raped her near Faizabad.

Fort Abbas DSP Mehar Nasir Sial stated the complainant was “characterless”, and that she was not a resident of Chak 282-HR.

The DSP said two witnesses of the case had retracted their statements, saying no rape incident occurred in front of them. He said the complainant was being used by suspects’ rivals. The DSP did not respond when asked that a medical examination could have helped them conclude the case.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2015