Prayer leader arrested on allegations of sexual assault

Maulvi Haq Nawaz accused of impregnating 15-year-old girl.

MULTAN:

A prayer leader and his son in Khawaja Gharib Nawaz area were arrested on Tuesday on allegations of sexual assault.

They would be presented before the court on Thursday (today) to seek their physical remand.

15-year-old Saira* said that she was regularly abused by Maulvi Haq Nawaz and his son Sajid.

She used to go to the masjid to learn Quran from Nawaz. She told her parents about the incident after she became pregnant who then arranged an abortion. Saira’s parents consulted their neighbours and caught the prayer leader and his son and handed them over to the police. Setal Mari police station house officer Akhtar Hussain told The Express Tribune that they have registered a case against the two and were investigating them. Quoting the girl’s neighbours, he said that Nawaz and his son admitted to sexually assaulting her on being beaten up.

“The girl came to the police station with her parents and neighbours. I’ll make sure that if Nawaz is guilty he gets the harshest possible sentence,” he said.

Hussain said that Nawaz’s son seemed to be innocent in the whole issue, adding that this was only his impression and a conclusion could only be made after complete investigations.

The police have sent Saira’s blood samples to the Civil Hospital Multan for tests to ascertain her claims. The report would be available to the police on Thursday (today).

*The name of the victim has been changed to protect her identity

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2010.