LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and newly appointed Inspector General of Police (IGP) Inam Ghani claimed at a news conference on Saturday that two suspects involved in the Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape case have been identified, but not arrested so far.

“The accused in the heinous crime will soon be arrested and brought to book through legal process,” said CM Buzdar, adding that he personally spoke to the rape survivor and assured her of complete justice.

Also flanked by the Punjab law and information ministers on the occasion at CM secretariat, IGP Ghani blamed the media for airing sensitive information about the suspects, Abid Malhi and Waqarul Hassan, which was available only with the CM, law minister and additional chief secretary (home).

Before the police teams could reach, both suspects had fled their houses in Qila Sattar Shah and Ali Town villages in Sheikhupura due to the leak of this information, the IGP claimed.

Explaining details of investigations on scientific grounds and use of resources from relevant agencies, IGP Ghani said DNA samples collected from the woman’s clothes matched with those of suspect Malhi, whose samples had been collected in another case in 2013.

Buzdar says show-cause notice issued to CCPO over his statement

He claimed that police could not get any more clues about him or his family as the suspect was identified as a ‘minor’ at the time of collection of samples. However, according to the birth year mentioned on his identity card, Malhi should be in his early 20s in 2013.

The IGP said a police team in Bahawalnagar actively searched for Malhi’s details and he was revealed to be a resident of Chak 260-HR of Fort Abbas tehsil in Bahawalnagar.

2013 rape case

Our correspondent in Bahawalnagar adds that Malhi along with his four accomplices had allegedly raped a woman and her 15-year-old daughter on June 15, 2013.

IGP Ghani told the media that Malhi, now 28, had previously used four mobile numbers that he got discontinued, and was currently using a fifth number that gave police a lead about the co-suspect Waqarul Hassan. He said police in plainclothes and private vehicles raided the houses of Malhi and Hassan, but remained unable to find them. He said Malhi had fled along with his wife, as police found a girl, a nikahnama and some other documents from his house. “Police are on the hunt for the men,” he said.

Malhi, a habitual rapist, was booked in seven criminal cases between 2013 and 2017, including two related to gang-rape incidents, while his accomplice had been released in one of the two robbery cases only 14 days ago.

Rejecting some TV channel reports, the IGP made it clear that none of the two suspects had been arrested. He said: “Now as we have all record of the two suspects, the police are conducting raids to arrest them.”

The newly appointed IGP particularly acknowledged the help extended by investigation and intelligence agencies as well as other state institutions in identifying the suspects and their villages. He then appealed to the people to inform the police if they found any information about the suspects, as the chief minister had announced Rs2.5 million as prize money for those who would give any clue leading to the arrest of the suspects.

Police absence, delayed response

In reply to a question, the Punjab police chief acknowledged that the survivor had been assaulted only because she could not get assistance on time as there was no police presence on the Lahore-Sialkot motorway. “Now, on the instructions of the chief minister, the Punjab police have taken over the control of the 91-kilometre sector and begun patrolling,” IGP Ghani said.

The chief minister also acknowledged that the woman’s call to the 130 helpline could not get a response and by the time she was connected to the police, the crime had taken place.

“In order to plug this gap, I discussed this issue with the investigation team and decided to link the police helpline 15 and Punjab Highway Patrol helpline 1124 with the motorway police’s 130,” CM Buzdar announced.

He said police had also been instructed to take measures to ensure that such heinous crimes did not occur in the first place.

Answering another question, the IGP said that the police were clear that they would be responsible for any crime within Punjab and not shift blame to ‘other agencies’. Police had been instructed to register first information reports wherever a crime occurred, which had increased the reporting of crimes, not the crime itself. In heinous crimes, including the Sahiwal tragedy, he claimed police had arrested the culprits and presented them before court.

CCPO’s statement

Responding to a question about the highly irresponsible statement of the newly posted Lahore’s Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Umer Sheikh, CM Buzdar said the IGP had issued a show-cause notice to the CCPO and sought a written reply within seven days.

“When we receive the CCPO’s written reply, we will take legal action accordingly,” he added.

Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2020