LAHORE: A senior Pakistani investigator who is part of the team carrying out a manhunt for suspects in the recent gang rape of a mother said on Monday the main suspect in the case had escaped being caught during a police raid because media furor alerted him to police zeroing in.
Protests were held in several Pakistani cities over the weekend over the handling of the investigation into the gang rape of a mother traveling with her children on a highway last Tuesday, as police launched a manhunt for the suspects which they said they had identified through DNA tracing.
Punjab’s Inspector General of Police Inam Ghani said at a press conference on Saturday that police had used cell phone data to track 27-year-old suspect Abid Ali and carried out raids at a village near Punjab’s Sheikhupura district to arrest him.
Prior to the raid, local media channels began running Ali’s photos and other identification documents, which tipped him off and he fled, a senior official who is a part of the team leading the manhunt told Arab News.
“If the media had not run off with the news provided by the Punjab Forensic Science Agency about the suspect, we would have caught him,” the official, who requested anonymity, said. “We missed him by mere seconds.”
He also blamed the Punjab police for prematurely sharing the names and photos of the suspects with the media.
The IG’s office and the spokesperson for the Punjab police did not respond to multiple calls seeking comment for this piece. Shehzada Sultan, Deputy Inspector General Investigations, and Zeeshan Asghar, Senior Superintendent Police Investigation, who are on a six-member investigation team commissioned for the rape case, could also not be reached.
For his part, IG police Ghani has held the media responsible for “alerting” the suspect.
“Unfortunately, since this [information about the suspect] had come out in the public domain, the suspect knew we were getting close,” Ghani told reporters.
Police say the woman, believed to be in her thirties, was traveling from Lahore to Gujranwala, main cities in Pakistan’s populous Punjab province, on Tuesday night when her car ran out of fuel.
She phoned police for help, but before they arrived two men took her and her children out of the vehicle at gunpoint and raped her beside the highway.
'Missed by seconds': Investigator says media furor tipped off suspect in Pakistan rape case
https://arab.news/rxee7
'Missed by seconds': Investigator says media furor tipped off suspect in Pakistan rape case
- Prior to police raid in a village this weekend, local media channels began running Abid Ali’s photos and identification documents, which led him to flee
- Member of investigation team blames Punjab police for prematurely sharing names and photos of suspects with media
Pakistan assembly speaker, Indian FM shake hands in first high-level contact since May
- Tensions persist between India and Pakistan after they engaged in brief military conflict in May this year
- Pakistan assembly speaker, Indian FM both attend former Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia’s funeral in Dhaka
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar shook hands in Dhaka on Wednesday, establishing the first high-level contact between officials of both countries since their brief military conflict in May.
Sadiq and Jaishankar arrived in Dhaka to attend the funeral of Bangladesh’s first female prime minister Khaleda Zia, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 80 after prolonged illness. Diplomats from several countries attended Zia’s funeral on Wednesday, which drew large crowds to the Bangladeshi capital.
Tensions persist between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan, who engaged in a four-day military conflict in May this year. The conflict was triggered when India blamed Pakistan for supporting a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir in April that killed over 20 tourists. Pakistan denied involvement and called for a transparent probe into the incident.
“Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan, exchanges greetings with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in Dhaka on Wednesday ahead of the funeral program of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia,” the official X account of Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Younus wrote.
https://x.com/ChiefAdviserGoB/status/2006340330585833665
Sadiq also met Zia’s son Tarique Rahman, the acting chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), to convey condolences over his mother’s demise from the people and government of Pakistan, the Pakistan High Commission in Bangladesh said.
“During the meeting, he recalled Begum Zia’s remarkable political leadership and noted her pivotal role in promoting historical affinities, mutual respect and cooperation between our two nations,” the high commission wrote on social media platform X.
https://x.com/PakinBangladesh/status/2006313161088204976
Senior officials from both India and Pakistan have refrained from shaking hands or exchanging pleasantries since the May conflict, as tensions persist between the two sides.
The May conflict saw both countries exchange artillery fire, pound each other with fighter jets and trade missiles and drone strikes before Washington brokered a ceasefire on May 10.
Sadiq is expected to meet senior officials of Bangladesh’s interim government during his trip, according to an earlier statement issued by his office.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had described Zia as a “committed friend of Pakistan” on Tuesday, praising her role in Bangladesh’s political life and expressing solidarity with the Bangladeshi people during what he called a difficult moment.
Zia, who served three terms as prime minister, led the BNP and remained a central figure in Bangladeshi politics despite years of ill health and imprisonment under the government of her longtime rival, Sheikh Hasina. She was released last year following Hasina’s ouster after a violent uprising.
Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of the same country until Bangladesh’s secession following a bloody civil war in 1971, an event that has long cast a shadow over bilateral ties. Relations remained largely strained for decades, shaped by historical grievances and political mistrust.
However, Islamabad enjoyed comparatively warmer ties with Dhaka during Zia’s tenure than under Hasina.
Engagement between Islamabad and Dhaka has increased since Hasina’s removal and the formation of an interim administration, with both sides signaling interest in improving political, diplomatic, economic and security ties.
