-Talks to IG Punjab, non-bailable clauses added to FIR
By Uzma Zafar
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday took notice of the assault on a female TikToker by a mob at Minar-e-Pakistan and spoke with Inspector General Punjab Police Inam Ghani regarding the incident.
PTI representative Sayed Zulfi Bukhari confirmed, on Twitter, that the premier had spoken to Punjab’s top police official and claimed that police “is catching all culprits involved in manhandling of [the] female TikToker”.
He added that it was a “gross violation of laws and social norms’ and assured that the government ‘won’t spare a single person involved” in the assault.
Bukhari further said that those involved in damaging the statue of Ranjit Singh at Lahore fort would also be arrested. Focal person to CM Punjab Azhar Mashwani said non-bailable clauses have been added to the FIR of the incident and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has ordered to arrest of the culprits as soon as possible.
Mashwani added that police is analysing the video clips and the CCTV footage of the area to identfy those involved in the assault. Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari also condemned the assault and harassment that occurred in the Greater Iqbal Park on Independence Day.
According to Mazari, the Ministry of Human Rights is in touch with relevant Punjab authorities to ensure strict action against the perpetrators. She stated that arrests have been made in the case, the FIR has been lodged and the MoHR is following up with authorities.
However, “we need to try and change such violent behavioural patterns in our people,” she remarked. Mazari also urged “effective implementation” of laws in order to have “some deterrent effect” on people’s behaviours.
However, she maintained that the main challenge is changing the ‘mindsets’ of the people to stop crimes against “all vulnerable members of our society”.
Earlier, Punjab government spokesman Fayyazul Hassan Chohan had said that the culprits are being identified through video footage.
“The incident of assault on a woman in Greater Iqbal Park is a shameful act which has brought shame to the society,” Fayyaz Chohan said in a statement.
