LAHORE: A fact-finding mission conducted jointly by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) and AGHS Legal Aid Cell said it cannot establish the veracity of widespread allegations that a student was sexually assaulted at a private college in Lahore in “absence of forensic evidence and credible testimonies”.
Last month, reports related to the alleged rape of a private college student flooded the social media, prompting the police to arrest a security guard at the college. However, the suspect denied the allegations while the victim could not be identified or located. Infuriated by the alleged incident, the students staged protests outside different colleges in Lahore, resulting in injuries to dozens of students. Demonstrations were also spread to other parts of Punjab, with the police arresting hundreds of students.
Later, the Lahore police registered a first information report (FIR) against the spread of misinformation and unverified news on social media. The case was registered under section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, which deals with “offences against dignity of a natural person”, while other charges include section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty); 500 (punishment for defamation); 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory); and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief).
According to HRCP fact-finding report, it conducted a fact-finding mission in collaboration with AGHS Legal Aid Cell, which comprises journalist Fatima Razzaq, AGHS staff members Robina Shaheen, Qamar Ramay and Rahat Gull, and HRCP staff member Halima Azhar. –Agencies
