Rape Case Ka Drop Scene

Students across Punjab have been protesting for several days over an alleged rape case at Punjab College, Lahore. Meanwhile, the Punjab government is dismissing the incident as fabricated and a conspiracy, and trying to end the protests by cracking down harshly on the students. Despite the deaths, injuries, and numerous arrests, the crackdown failed to suppress the unrest, and the government declared a holiday across Punjab on Friday.

Maryam Nawaz held a press conference on Wednesday, where she was accompanied by Zartaj Gul’s sister and a female student. She claimed that there had been deliberate attempts to provoke the students and that the alleged rape incident had never occurred.

To understand the situation, note that there were two incidents in Lahore.

The first incident took place at Lahore College for Women, where female students complained of daily harassment by male staff and demanded the removal of all male staff from the campuses. When the students protested, the Vice-Chancellor appointed the senior-most professor, Shabnam Gul, as the convener of the harassment committee. She told the students that justice would not be served through protests and advised them to raise the matter before the committee instead. This enraged the students, and they intensified their protests, prompting higher authorities to intervene. Consequently, the college was closed until Monday, and Shabnam Gul was dismissed from her position.

The second incident occurred at Punjab College, where a female student attending evening classes was allegedly called under the pretext of discussing her vehicle fee. She was reportedly taken to the basement, where a driver, guard, and another individual sexually assaulted her. After hearing her screams, teachers arrived at the scene, called an ambulance, and transferred the girl to a hospital in a critical condition. The students alleged that the college principal threatened them for three days, warning that anyone who spoke out would be expelled. As the news spread, protests escalated, and the Punjab government started changing its stance.

If the students’ protest was indeed unjustified, there should have been an investigation. However, surprisingly, the college’s CCTV footage went missing, and the incident was declared a fabricated story. Allegedly, parents were threatened, the media was controlled, and a crackdown was launched against the students. Punjab Police and the government’s spokesperson labeled it a fake incident.

On the other hand, the provincial education minister visited the college and confirmed that the CCTV footage was indeed missing and that the rape incident had occurred. He took action against the principal by suspending her and closed the college. It seems the government did not take the minister into confidence, raising further suspicions.

Allegedly, the Punjab government blackmailed the parents, asking them to support the authorities if they wanted to protect their daughter’s honor. Two individuals wearing masks were made to record video messages claiming that the girl fell from the stairs. Before this, the girl’s very existence was treated as a myth. Government spokesperson Uzma Bukhari stated in the assembly that the girl has to live in society, so the matter should not be publicized to avoid tarnishing her reputation.

Following this, Maryam Nawaz brought an “eyewitness” alongside her and allegedly blackmailed Shabnam Gul, promising to restore her job if she cooperated. The narrative was then built that no such incident had occurred, and therefore Shabnam Gul’s job should be reinstated.

The real situation was that Shabnam Gul was a professor at a different college and was the convener of the harassment committee for an unrelated incident, having no connection to the Punjab College case.

Furthermore, the “eyewitness” stated that she was not the actual witness but rather another girl was, at which point Maryam Nawaz turned off her microphone and declared that there were no eyewitnesses, only propaganda. This act further deepened suspicions.

Instead of playing the judge, Maryam Nawaz could have simply handed over the CCTV footage to the media, making the scripted press conference unnecessary.

Maryam Nawaz also said about the affected girl that she had not been raped and was “pure and chaste.” This reflects a mindset that often blames the rape victims for losing their honor, whereas it is the perpetrator who is dishonored by their crime. Was Maryam Nawaz implying that rape victims are not pure? This kind of shallow thinking is why many incidents go unreported, as parents fear their daughter will be considered dishonored and unmarriageable. The psychological impact of such an attitude lingers with the victim for life.

In short, as a female leader in Punjab, Maryam Nawaz has not only failed to protect young girls but has also become a barrier to justice by attempting to cover up incidents and politicizing them using government resources.

The Punjab government claims that all this was orchestrated by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), but the incident occurred inside Punjab College, and the protests were carried out by the students of the same college. The principal of the college was the one who made the CCTV footage disappear and threatened the students, and it was the Punjab government that ordered the brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters throughout the province. So where does PTI fit into all of this?