Two custodial deaths put police under scrutiny

LAHORE:

Lahore police are facing growing scrutiny after two separate incidents within days, the alleged rape of a mentally challenged young woman inside a police station and the deaths of two women in police custody.

The latest incident occurred at Township police station, where two women died after falling ill while in police custody.

The women, identified as Anmol and Amina, were detained after the Police Helpline 15 received a complaint alleging they had attempted to fraudulently obtain gold earrings from women.

Police said preliminary interrogation indicated that both had previous records in similar fraud cases, following which a criminal case was registered against them.

Police claimed the women suddenly fell ill while they were being transferred from the operations wing to the investigation wing. Officials said both began frothing at the mouth, with one woman dying at the police station and the other succumbing at hospital after being shifted for treatment.

Investigation sources claimed that when the women's condition deteriorated, officials from the operations wing attempted to hand them over to the investigation wing. However, investigation personnel allegedly declined to take custody because of their critical condition, after which they were taken for medical examination.

Police maintained that both women were drug addicts and suggested their condition may have worsened because they were unable to obtain narcotics while in custody. Investigators are also examining the possibility that the women had consumed a poisonous substance before their arrest.

However, investigation sources also alleged that the women may have been subjected to physical abuse during detention, contributing to their deaths. Police have neither confirmed nor endorsed the allegation.

Officials said the bodies had been sent for postmortem examination and stressed that the exact cause of death would only be determined after autopsy and forensic reports.

The custodial deaths came only days after an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) posted to the investigation wing at Ghaziabad police station was booked on allegations of raping a mentally challenged young woman inside the police station.