KARACHI: Police in Pakistan’s Faisalabad district said on Wednesday they were investigating new evidence in a case in which four women were allegedly stripped before being tortured, saying authorities were examining CCTV footage and mobile videos to ascertain the truth of the case.
Five men were arrested on Monday and Tuesday on charges of assaulting a group of women, stripping them naked and filming them in a marketplace in Faisalabad. Mobile phone videos of the incident were widely shared on social media and showed the naked women being manhandled outside a shop as a large crowd watched.
According to an initial police report, the women went to the area to collect garbage on Monday at around 10:30am. When they entered one of the stores in the market and asked for water, the shop owner accused them of trying to commit robbery. The women said they were subsequently beaten up, stripped, then dragged out on the road as people made their videos "in naked condition," the police report said.
New CCTV footage that emerged after the filing of the police report showed the women stripping themselves.
Imran Mehmood, Faisalabad’s regional police officer, urged people to stop "victim blaming" after the emergence of the new videos, saying no conclusion could be drawn just by looking at CCTV footage.
“We will see if the women stripped themselves naked on their own or someone forced them to do it since the footage has no sound. We will examine all the video clips together to get to the bottom of the incident,” he told Arab News, adding: “People should avoid victim blaming before the relevant authorities reach a conclusion.”
Mehmood said his department was investigating the case on merit.
“At the moment, there are three well established facts,” he said. “The first crime which the arrested individuals committed was illegal confinement of these women, second was mishandling, and third was torturing them.”
The police official said neither the shopkeepers nor anyone among the crowd had called the police to report the case, which was their primary responsibility.
“When all of this was happening, no one bothered to stop it or inform the police,” he said. “We took action after we found out about the incident through our social media team.”
New CCTV footage, he added, would only determine the application of Section 354-A of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) that deals with “assault or use of criminal force against woman and stripping her of her clothes.”
Such acts are punishable by death or imprisonment for life along with financial penalty.
According to the police complaint, a copy of which is available with Arab News, the suspects have been charged under sections 354-A (assault or use of criminal force against a woman and stripping her), 509 (insulting modesty or causing sexual harassment), 147 (punishment for rioting) and 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of an offence committed in prosecution of common object) of the PPC.
Pakistan police say probing new evidence in case of four women 'stripped' and tortured
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Pakistan police say probing new evidence in case of four women 'stripped' and tortured
- Five men were arrested earlier this week allegedly for assaulting, stripping and filming a group of women in Faisalabad market
- New CCTV footage that emerged after the filing of the initial police report showed the women stripping themselves
Pakistan forms five-member panel to draft rules for appointment of judges
- The committee will comprise Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Attorney-General Mansoor Usman Awan, Senators Ali Zafar and Farooq H. Naek, and Akhtar Hussain
- The Judicial Commission of Pakistan says it accords highest priority to procedure and criteria for assessment, evaluation and fitness for appointment of judges
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi has constituted a five-member committee for drafting rules to regulate procedure and criteria for the appointment of judges, the Supreme Court of Pakistan said on Friday.
The development came after Chief Justice Afridi presided over meetings of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan to consider constitution of the committee to draft rules for judges’ appointment, nomination of Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan as eighth judge of the constitutional bench of the Supreme Court, and the appointment of additional judges in Sindh and Peshawar high courts.
The committee to draft rules will be led by Supreme Court judge, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and comprise Attorney-General of Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, Senators Ali Zafar and Farooq H. Naek, and lawyer Akhtar Hussain, according to a Supreme Court statement. The panel will draft rules and share them with the Judicial Commission of Pakistan secretariat by December 15.
“The Judicial Commission of Pakistan unanimously decided to accord highest priority toward framing of rules relating to regulating its procedure including the procedure and criteria for assessment, evaluation and fitness for appointment of Judges,” the Supreme Court of Pakistan said in a statement.
The commission also approved the nomination of Justice Hassan, a judge of the Supreme Court, for the constitutional bench of the apex court.
In its maiden session on Nov. 5, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, reconstituted under the 26th constitutional amendment, appointed Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan as head of the seven-judge constitutional bench to take up constitutional cases. The bench includes Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha Malik, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Musarrat Hilali and Naeem Akhtar Afghan, and high-profile cases with political implications will now be brought before it to adjudicate such matters.
The Judicial Commission of Pakistan nominated Justices Adnan-ul-Karim Memon and Agha Faisal as judges of constitutional benches of the Sindh High Court by a majority vote, according to the Supreme Court statement. The agenda for appointment of additional judges to the Sindh and Peshawar high courts was deferred till December 21.
Six Pakistani soldiers, 22 militants killed in restive northwest
- The soldiers died in an attack in Kurram district where fierce sectarian fighting has killed at least 130 people in past few weeks
- Pakistan has blamed a surge in militancy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on militants operating out of Afghanistan, Kabul denies the allegation
PESHAWAR: Six Pakistani soldiers and 22 militants were killed in three separate gunfights in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Pakistani military said on Saturday.
Nine militants were killed and six injured in a gunfight during an intelligence-based operation in KP’s Tank district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing.
Ten militants were killed in another operation in the North Waziristan district, while six Pakistani soldiers were killed while repulsing a militant attack, which left three assailants dead, on a check-post in the Kurram district.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Kharji [militant] found in the area,” the ISPR said in a statement. “Security Forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe-out the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve.”
The attack targeted the check-post near Bagan, a populated locality in Kurram district where fierce sectarian fighting has killed at least 130 people during the past few weeks. However, a ceasefire between the area’s Sunni and Shia communities is holding and the attack on the security check-post was not connected to the recent clashes.
“Kurram is calm but tense amid acute shortage of medicines and edibles,” Kurram police spokesman Riaz Hussain told Arab News.
A jirga, a council of tribal elders, which announced an indefinite ceasefire in Kurram on Friday, was meeting rival Shia and Sunni tribes for a solution to their differences stemming from land disputes.
Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, has witnessed a number of attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups that targeted security forces convoys and check posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in recent months.
Last week, an army captain among two Pakistani soldiers and eight militants were killed in two separate operations in KP’s Bannu and Khyber districts, the Pakistani military said.
Pakistan has frequently accused neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups, urging the Taliban administration in Kabul to prevent its territory from being used by armed factions to launch cross-border attacks.
Afghan officials, however, deny involvement, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
Pakistan’s Haris Rauf, India’s Jasprit Bumrah nominated for ICC’s player of month
- The third nominee is South African Marco Jensen who excelled against India and Sri Lanka last month
- Pakistani spinner Noman Ali last month bagged the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award for October
KARACHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced nominees for the Men’s Player of the Month Award for November, with Pakistani pacer Haris Rauf, India’s Jasprit Bumrah and South African Marco Jensen named as contenders.
The award recognizes the best male cricketer of the month, considering performances in Tests, one-day and Twenty20 internationals. A voting academy and fan determine the winner from the three nominees.
“Rauf played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s historic ODI series win in Australia — their first in 22 years,” the ICC said this week. “The 24-year-old Jensen showcased his all-round brilliance across all formats in November and India’s Bumrah reaffirmed his reputation as one of the greats of the games.”
The ICC said that Pakistan’s tour of Zimbabwe saw a strong performance by Rauf as the tourists won both the ODI and T20I series 2-1. Rauf took 10 wickets, including a five-wicket haul in the second match, steering Pakistan to victory. He continued his form in the T20Is, with five wickets and wrapped up the month with 18 dismissals across formats.
Jansen excelled in the T20I series against India, showcasing his all-round skills with a 17-ball 54 in the third match and consistent wickets. His standout performance came in the first Test against Sri Lanka in Durban, where he recorded career-best match figures of 11/86, including a seven-wicket haul that dismissed Sri Lanka for 42, securing a dominant 233-run victory for South Africa, according to the ICC.
Bumrah led India to a commanding 295-run victory in the opening Border-Gavaskar Test in Perth with an eight-wicket haul. His fiery opening spell restricted Australia to 104 after India’s first-innings collapse.
Pakistani spinner Noman Ali last month bagged the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award for October after his stellar 20 wickets in a Test series against England that helped his team secure a 2-1 victory.
Pakistan cricket team arrive in South Africa to play all-format series starting on Dec. 10
- Pakistan to play two Tests, three ODIs and three T20I matches in South Africa
- Rizwan’s team heads to South Africa after beating Zimbabwe in white-ball series
KARACHI: The Pakistan cricket team have arrived in South Africa to play an eight-match all-format series beginning from Dec. 10 till January 2025, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on Saturday.
The national squad arrived in Durban after defeating Zimbabwe in the ODI and T20 series earlier this month. Pakistan will play two Tests and three One Day Internationals and three Twenty20 matches against the host country.
The first match of the series, a T20I contest, will take place on Dec. 10.
“National T20 squad arrived in Durban from Zimbabwe,” the PCB said in a post on social media site X. “Captain Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah also arrived in Durban.”
The statement said the Pakistan cricket team will rest on Sunday before beginning their first practice session the same day at the Kingsmead Cricket Stadium in Durban.
The South Africa series will see the return of cricket stars Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi, who were both rested for the Zimbabwe T20I and ODI series.
Pakistan squads for South Africa tour:
Tests: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha
ODIs: Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)
T20Is: Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)
Pakistan’s finmin says efficient management of state resources key to improving fiscal position
- Pakistan is actively trying to sell its stakes in state-owned assets to private investors
- Muhammad Aurangzeb urges private companies to focus on export-oriented growth
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Saturday stressed the importance of efficient management of state assets by private investors in improving the country’s fiscal position, calling on the private sector to focus on increasing the country’s exports.
Islamabad has sought to privatize loss-making state enterprises which have accumulated losses in the billions over decades, by handing over their management to private companies to create fiscal space.
Pakistan has identified 25 public sector enterprises for privatization, including the flagship carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), banks, hotels and power generation and distribution companies. Islamabad’s move to privatize the PIA and other state-owned enterprises is part of a deal with the IMF for financial bailout programs.
“This is very important and I keep saying this repeatedly that the private sector has to lead this country,” Aurangzeb said during an event in Karachi.
He added that SOEs were inflicting losses worth Rs2.2 billion [$7.9 million] per day to Pakistan, adding this amounts to Rs6 trillion [$21.5 billion] yearly.
“Think about this, this year we have to collect taxes worth Rs12.9 trillion [$46.3 million], so approximately 50 percent of this, if there is no [financial] drag of the SOEs, if all of them are being run by the private sector, if this drag is not there then you can imagine our fiscal balance or imbalance it will become so much better,” he said.
The Pakistani minister urged private companies to focus on exports, adding that while the country had achieved economic stability, it needed to achieve growth as well.
“If we have to end this boom-bust cycle and if we have to take this economy toward to a 5, 6 and 7 percent growth, it has to be an export-led growth,” Aurangzeb said.
Pakistan has made some economic gains in recent months, with the stock market performing impressively and breaching over 109,000 points at close of trade on Friday.
Inflation in the country, which reached a record high of 38 percent in May 2023, slowed to 4.9 percent in November, lower than the government’s forecast.
