Captive freed: Detained woman accuses employer of sexual assault

Says she had been locked up for more than three weeks.

GUJRANWALA:

A woman freed from the servant quarters at Ghakkar Tehsil Hospital on Monday accused her employer, an advocate, and another man of sexually assaulting and torturing her for over three weeks during her detention in the room.

Lawyer Mubashar Cheema rejected the sexual assault and torture allegations and said that he had detained the woman, who worked as a maid at his house, because she had allegedly stolen gold jewellery and Rs150,000 cash.

Cheema’s wife, a doctor employed at the Ghakkar Tehsil Hospital, said she was unaware of the theft. She said none of her belongings including her jewellery were missing. The lawyer and his family were residing in a house allotted to his wife at the Ghakkar Tehsil Hospital and the main had been detained at the servant quarters attached to the house.

The woman and the lawyer were at the City Police Office and no FIR had been lodged in the case by the time this report was filed. The woman was in a meeting with SP Shoaib Khurram Jaanbaz.

The other alleged rapist, Tariq, has gone into hiding.

The woman earlier told the police that on resisting their attempts to rape her Cheema and his accomplice, Tariq, allegedly tortured her with hot iron and knives. She said she had been detained since April 20.

She rejected the theft allegation and said that the lawyer had given her into police custody on similar allegations some months ago. She said she was released by the police for lack of evidence against her.

A group of lawyers affiliated with the Wazirabad Bar Association who had gathered in front of the Ghakkar police station in support of Cheema also beat up media persons trying to reach the woman and get her statements. They used foul language for the woman and said she was only accusing their colleague for publicity.

Mustansar Hussain Gondal of the Wazirabad Bar Council denounced the actions of bar members and said these should not be attributed to the entire lawyers’ community of Wazirabad.

He said the lawyers condemned violence against women and would not support Cheema and his accomplice if the allegations were proven to be true.

Ghakkar Police station house officer Mahmood Butt said he and his team raided the hospital and freed the woman on being tipped of about her detention by the Rescue 15 officials.

He said the woman had called Rescue 15 helpline using Cheema’s mobile phone. She said Cheema had left the phone in the room on Sunday night.

SHO Butt said the servant quarters were locked when they raided the place. He said Cheema’s wife was summoned but she did not have the keys. She called her husband to the scene with the keys who unlocked the room in police’s presence. The SHO said the hands and legs of the woman were tied up with ropes when the room was unlocked.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2011.