'Harassing a woman is what this nation has come down to'

The arrest of former human rights minister Shireen Mazari has appalled netizens and politicians alike with resounding condemnation against the violence inflicted upon her. Footage emerged of female police officers dragging Mazari out of her car as she resisted their force and called them out for their use of force against her.

Shortly after the arrest, Mazari's daughter, lawyer Imaan Mazari spoke to reporters where she said her mother has been 'abducted' and that she will 'come after the government.'

Member of the National Assembly representing Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Nafisa Shah tweeted that the arrest was uncalled for.

Islamabad Police dislcosed the reason for her arrest, citing that it was on the request of the anti-corruption department and that she was not mishandled by female police officers.

The Islamabad police account faced backlash for their statement with one netizen asking if they were blind and that force is clearly seen in the footage that was circulated on social media.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan condemned the the 'violent abduction'. Lashing out at the current government, the former premier stated that they cannot 'coerce her with this fascism.'

Posters likening Mazari to Argentine Marxist and reformist Che Guevera, whose efforts in the Cuban Revolution made him a symbol of activism in popular culture.

Speculations on her arrest surfaced online, netizens claimed she was arressted for corruption cases against her father in 1972, when Mazari was only six years old.

Political scientist Shama Junejo voiced her storng condemnation against the 'inhuman' arrest of 'an aged woman.'

Pakistani social media users were not the only ones who voiced their outrage at the arrest of the former humans rights minister; Russian journalist Veronika Sofia said her intwerview with Mazari on bombings in Lebanon was the best interview she conducted and that she condemns her arrest.

Voicing her political stance, Sofia bashed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and warned that Pakistan might face the same predicament as Sri Lanka.

Following social media outrage, Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz ordered Mazari's release. The Islamabad High Court ordered Mazari's presence at 11:30pm.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz vice-president Maryam Nawaz held a media conference in which she shared explosive allegations of her incarceration. Maryam Nawaz claimed that PTI members were using the 'woman card' and that if Mazari is convicted of a crime she should own up to it and prove herself innocent through a trial. Maryam Nawaz went on to describe her incarceration and arrest, how unlike Mazari she was arrested by male police officers instead of female police officers. The PMLN leader spoke of how she was secretly filmed while imprisoned and how guards would taunt her during raids in the middle of the night.

Obscene attacks on women, verbally, physically have become so rampant in every strata of society, these attacks have also seeped into the world of politics, highlighted netizen Noreena Shams.