A beautician from Islamabad filed a complaint with police saying she was allegedly raped by a taxi driver in a forest area outside Rawalpindi, DawnNews reported on Friday.

An initial medical examination of the 25-year-old victim confirmed that she had been subjected to sexual abuse.

The woman stated in her complaint that she worked at a Chinese beauty parlour in Islamabad and had booked an online cab to go home after work at around 8pm on January 31.

However, the cab dropped her off at the highway, after which she sat in a taxi that had stopped nearby. The victim said she asked the taxi driver to drive her to her home in Islamabad's G-11 sector.

Instead of taking her home, the taxi driver allegedly kept driving around for three to four hours and later brought her to a forest near Rawalpindi's Dhok Qazian at around 1am on February 1.

The victim alleged that the taxi driver then raped her in the forest and despite her cries, continued with the sexual assault.

A first information report (FIR) of the incident was registered under Section 376 (punishment for rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) at Rawat police station on the victim's complaint, police said on Friday.

The investigating officer of the case, sub-inspector Khizar Hayat, told DawnNews that police were conducting raids to arrest the accused suspect.

He said police were gathering information about the registration of the vehicle and the suspect would be arrested soon.

Since the beginning of 2018, there has been a marked upsurge in the reporting of sexual abuse cases across Pakistan. The brutal rape and murder of Zainab Ansari in Kasur last month, in particular, shocked the entire country, with #JusticeforZainab becoming the rallying cry in a nationwide drive to end violence against children.

Opinion

Editorial

‘Source of terror’
Updated 29 Mar, 2024

‘Source of terror’

It is clear that going after militant groups inside Afghanistan unilaterally presents its own set of difficulties.
Chipping in
29 Mar, 2024

Chipping in

FEDERAL infrastructure development schemes are located in the provinces. Most such projects — for instance,...
Toxic emitters
29 Mar, 2024

Toxic emitters

IT is concerning to note that dozens of industries have been violating environmental laws in and around Islamabad....
Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...