24 students arrested in Lahore protests over alleged rape of college student

Students face multiple PPC charges for 'vandalism' and 'attack on police' with petrol bombs during protests.

LAHORE:

Over 24 students protesting against the alleged assault on a female student from a private college have been arrested, while a case has been registered against 250 unidentified individuals in Lahore on Thursday.

The case was filed at Harbanspura Police Station by Sub-Inspector Usman Akbar.

It included various charges under sections 324, 353, 291, 186, 290, 436, 147, 149, and 382 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC)

According to the First Information Report (FIR), students and miscreants "engaged in vandalism and attacked the police with petrol bombs".

The report claims that the "attacks" by student protestors destroyed motorcycles belonging to six police employees parked at the police station.

A police officer stated that a heavy police presence has been deployed outside various campuses in the city.

A security guard accused of raping a first-year student at a private college in Lahore has been taken into custody, authorities confirmed on Sunday.

The incident, which surfaced on social media, sparked widespread outrage and protests, resulting in clashes and injuries.

The alleged rape occurred on October 10, and speculation over it began to circulate on social media prompting public reaction and an investigation. However, officials claim that despite the guard's detention, no concrete evidence or victim was identified, casting doubts on the case's authenticity.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has also dismissed claims of a rape case at a private college in Lahore, calling it a "fabricated case" . After the story went viral, an investigation was conducted over several days, and the findings concluded that no such incident occurred.

According to Maryam Nawaz, the alleged victim had been hospitalised since October 2 due to a serious fall, which left her critically injured and admitted to the ICU.

Students in Rawalpindi have also staged protests over an alleged assault on a student in Lahore, targeting a private college near Khanna Pul.

The protesters threw stones at the campus, shattering windows of the building and parked vehicles, Express News reported.

The demonstrators expanded their protest to other areas, including Morgah Jehlum Road and GT Road in Gujar Khan.

They also set objects taken from the college library on fire along the Express Highway service road.

Previously, tensions escalated in Faisalabad as dozens of students from a local private college protested, blocking roads and clashing with police, following allegations of sexual abuse at a college in Lahore.

The protesters pelted stones, chanted slogans and engaged in a standoff with law enforcement. The demonstration took place in the Batala Colony area, where students expressed their outrage over the alleged incident in Lahore.

The protesters continue to demand action against the individuals involved in the alleged abuse.