LHC summons IG: ‘Try child rapists as terrorists’

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Thursday summoned the inspector general of Punjab Police in connection with a petition asking that defendants in child rape cases be tried under anti-terrorism laws. The petition has been moved by four lawyers affiliated with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) through Babar Awan. They said that there had been a spate of heinous crimes against minors in recent weeks that had spread terror in society, such as the rape of a five-year-old girl in Lahore. The crime was “rampant” in the Punjab, they said, and the state should punish it more harshly to set a greater deterrent. The petitioners also asked the court to seek details of all rape cases registered in the Punjab and the number of challans submitted to the trial courts in the last five years. After hearing the initial arguments, Justice Sheikh Najmul Hassan issued notice to the IG and sought the assistant of a Punjab government law officer.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 11^th, 2013.