The mother of two boys filed an application at Khanpur police station against the contractor of a lychee orchard for abusing her children in Haripur.
Meanwhile, the police have earlier lodged a report of theft against the children at the behest of the orchard contractor.
Talking to journalists, the woman who is a widow, said that her sons aged 13 and 14 years, went to the market on June 29 where the orchard contractor and his employees snatched their motorcycle, cell phones, and Rs3,000 after which they were tortured on the allegation that they had stolen lychees.
The widow said the boys were kept hostage for eight hours from noon to 8pm and the contractor and his henchmen stripped the boys naked and made a video of the youngsters. The mother of the victims demanded justice from the authorities.
According to details, 13-year-old Raqib and 14-year-old Mehboob, Shakeel Gujjar, caught and dragged the two boys to a contractor named Waheed who brutally tortured them. Later, he asked his other employees to continue beating the boys with sticks.
The victims said that they were stripped naked and filmed through mobile phones. The contractor threatened them they would make these videos viral on social media.
The police said the boys’ mother, Jabeen Akhtar, widow of Shamriz, had filed a petition on July 13 in which only violence was mentioned.
However, an application filed earlier by the orchard contractor two days ago stated that the boys had stolen fruit from the orchard several times, causing them a loss of thousands of rupees.
The complaint also stated that the boys had been warned several times to stop stealing but two weeks ago, they were caught red-handed and handed over to the police.
The video of the theft has also been shown to the police as evidence. The police have received complaints from both sides.
According to SHO Khanpur Siddique Shah justice will be done. Some local people said the woman went to the police station with her children and created a scene at the police station.
They added the woman could not produce the video of violence.
Meanwhile, the woman also alleged that local politicians were exerting pressure on them. However, the opinion of the local people on the issue is divided.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 15th, 2021.
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