Maid abducted, raped for snubbing indecent advances

Police register FIR on intervention by PPP women leaders; SHO suspended for mishandling the case

KARACHI:

A 17-year-old domestic worker was abducted and sexually assaulted in Gulshan-e-Maymar, highlighting urgent concerns over the safety of young domestic workers. Police have arrested the main suspect, while a search continues for his accomplice.

According to police reports, the victim, resident of Gulshan-e-Maymar, Jehanabad, was abducted by men in a car. She was reportedly rendered semi-conscious, taken to an undisclosed location, assaulted, and later abandoned in a deserted area after four to five hours.

The victim's family approached the Gulshan-e-Maymar police station for legal action, but their complaint was initially ignored, forcing them to seek help from PPP leader and National Assembly member Dr Shahida Rahmani. Following her intervention and coordination with the IG Sindh and Federal Interior Minister, police registered the case under Sections 365, 376, and 506, and the primary suspect, Shahi Sardar, was arrested. Efforts are ongoing to apprehend his accomplice.

IGP Javed Alam Odho has suspended and demoted the local SHO for delaying the registration of the FIR and mishandling the complaint. Police said the arrested suspect was a former union head of the residential complex where the victim worked, and that the attack was reportedly motivated by personal enmity after the family refused to allow the suspect to employ the girl.

The victim's mother told The Express Tribune that the suspect had harassed the girl earlier, and the assault occurred when she went downstairs to buy food while working in the apartment.

Following the incident, Provincial Minister for Women Development Shaheen Sher Ali visited the victim, expressing concern over the delay in filing the FIR and assuring full legal assistance. She emphasised that perpetrators of such heinous acts would face no leniency, and ordered a transparent investigation and proper medical care for the victim.

Dr Shahida Rahmani condemned the initial police inaction, stating that the FIR should have been filed immediately after the family submitted the medical report, and praised swift action by higher authorities following her intervention. She demanded that both the arrested suspect and his fugitive accomplice face the strictest punishment.