Rape Allegations: Villagers accuse police of shielding suspects

FAISALABAD:

Relatives of two women allegedly gang raped by men from a rival family on Wednesday staged a demonstration in protest against police’s failure to arrest the suspects.

The protesters, residents of Shah Mehmood village, said Kot Shakir police were not taking action against Mukhtar, Altaf and Javaid because they had allegedly been bribed by them. They said the suspects had broken into their house in absence of the male members of the family and sexually assaulted three women. They said they were contesting a court case against the suspects’ family over ownership of some agricultural land in the village.

The three women, present at the protest, alleged, “they called four friends and the seven of them sexually assaulted us at gunpoint.”

They said the assailants exited the house from backdoor when villagers gathered in front of the house on hearing their cries. Kot Shakir SHO rejected the allegations that police were supporting the suspects.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd, 2011.