LAHORE: Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Inam Ghani has said police operations are underway to arrest the suspects involved in violence and assault on a woman in Greater Iqbal Park on August 14.

He said the police investigation scope was expanded to other districts of the province to trace the suspects and raids were being conducted in Faisalabad, Kasur and Sheikhupura and 26 more suspects were arrested.

He said the police are working day and night to trace the accused through geo-fencing, Nadra records, CCTV footage, and other evidence and modern technology and arrests of the suspects from different districts are being carried out. The police have so far interrogated 407 suspects in connection with the tragic incident, of whom 92 have been arrested while the rest have been released. IGP Ghani directed the officers to intensify efforts to identify the remaining accused and arrest them as soon as possible.

He said steps should be taken to ensure the safety of women and strict legal action would be taken against the perpetrators of harassment, violence and abuse against women in all cases.

He added that the media would also be kept informed of the progress made in the rickshaw abuse with a woman case. He said journalists and the public were requested not to spread any news or information without confirmation, however, if the public has any information about any such incident, they should alert the police.

He said the police will spare no effort in arresting all the accused involved in these tragic incidents and they will be sentenced by the court.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2021