KARACHI, Feb 21 The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed its deep concern over the gang-rape of a young Kohli girl.

According to the information received by the HRCP, a 17-year-old girl of village Mokryo, Taluka Nagarparkar, Tharparkar, was allegedly kidnapped on Jan 24 and gang-raped by an influential person and his accomplices.

Next day the victim was thrown in front of her house. The father of the victim approached the Nangarparkar police station to lodge a case against alleged rapists but the police refused to register the FIR.

On Feb 12, a large number of people from the Kohli community protested against the police and approached the Hyderabad bench of the Sindh High Court with the plea to order the Nagarparkar police to register an FIR.

Later, on the order of the court, the police registered a case on Feb 17 against four persons — Habibullah Khoso, Ramzan Khoso, Ghulam Nabi Khoso and Veroo Mahraj — but none of the suspects could be arrested as yet.

According to the HRCP report, before registering the FIR, the police called a jirga of the elders of the Kohli community and asked them not to raise a hue and cry, rather hand over the girl to the nominated suspects so that she could be married to a man of their tribe. The police also threatened them of dire consequences if they did not cooperate with the police, it added.

On Feb 18, the police raided village Dhana Gam, union council Pithapur, the native village of Veerji Kohli, who actively campaigned for the registration of the gang-rape case.

Veerji Kohli, and 12 of his relatives were beaten up and arrested. The police also threatened to fix them in criminal cases if they tried to pursue the case, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan noted, and urged the chief minister to take immediate action against the influential people involved in the kidnapping and gang-rape case.

It also demanded restoration of to the rape victim and her family, and release of those arrested on false charges.—PPI