Three women accused of murdering a 15-year-old domestic worker in Lahore were handed over to police custody on a two-day physical remand on Wednesday. The case proceedings were held in a district and sessions court, where Judicial Magistrate Mohammad Zia Khan pronounced the court's decision.

On Sunday, the body of a teenage domestic worker was recovered by police from a stormwater drain in Lahore's Iqbal Town area.

Later on Tuesday, Superintendent Police (SP) Investigation Shazia Sarwar announced the arrest of three suspects in connection with the alleged murder of the domestic worker.

Subsequently, a case was registered against the three women — owner of the house where the victim worked, the owner's daughter and her sister-in-law — on the complaint of the victim's father under Sections 302 (punishment for qatl-i-amd), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), and 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

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"The accused tortured the domestic worker which led to her death," said SP Sarwar, adding that the accused "dumped the girl's body in the drain nearby Neelum Block".

The officer revealed that the women had also made a "fake call to the police helpline claiming that the girl had run away after stealing from them". She said that the three women were traced using CCTV footage and the call data record (CDR) of the mobile phones used.

A homicide unit led by Sub Inspector (SI) Murad Rasool then arrested the women.

A post-mortem examination of the victim girl was conducted but a report is yet to be released.