LAHORE, Sept 19: Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi ordered on Monday registration of a case against Faisalabad SP (investigation) Abdullah Khalid, the main accused in the Sonia Naz rape case, after suspending him from service.

Reportedly, he also ordered proceedings against Mr Khalid under removal from service ordinance. Faisalabad DIG Chaudhry Sajjad Ahmed had also been transferred and made officer on special duty (OSD).

The chief minister took the decision at a meeting in the light of a judicial inquiry report, which was conducted by a one-man tribunal comprising Faisalabad District and Sessions Judge Abdul Waheed Khan.

Sonia Naz welcomed the decision and thanked the government for initiating the action against the culprits. “It (the action) has, to some extent, given me a sigh of relief. I am hopeful that the accused would be penalized and taken to task,” she told Dawn. She said that she would pursue the case till its logical end.

The chief minister took the action against the officers for their involvement in various scandals pointed out in the judicial inquiry report.

He also ordered investigation into the fake preparation of documents of stolen vehicles in Faisalabad. He authorized the Chief Minister’s Inspection Team (CMIT) to investigate the matter.

A senior official of the Punjab government said that the action against the SP and DIG had been taken not on rape charges as Ms Naz did not appear before the tribunal.

He said the action against the SP had been taken for keeping her husband in illegal detention and then helping him escape from police custody. A case would be registered against the SP on those charges, he added.

Similarly, he said, the action against the DIG had been taken for his alleged involvement in making allegations against the SP which brought a bad name to the department. The CMIT would also investigate the matter and submit a report to the chief minister shortly.

Ms Naz had alleged that Jaranwala police SHO Jamshad Chishti had raped her at the behest of the SP. The SHO had already been suspended from service.

On the other hand, the police inquiry team headed by Punjab police (crimes branch) DIG Zafar Qureshi had submitted its findings to the IGP.

Police sources said that the rape element would be examined before the police report was made public.