KASUR: Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Arif Nawaz Khan on Wednesday ordered the suspension of two police officers after protests broke out in Kasur, a day after the remains of three minor boys were recovered in Chunian tehsil. Police suspect the boys were murdered after being sexually assaulted.
Angry protestors blocked main roads by burning tyres and chanting slogans against the police. They also surrounded the Chunian police station demanding immediate arrest of the culprits and putting an end to incidents of child abuse.
Following the demonstrations, IGP Khan ordered the suspension of Chunian DSP Naeem Warak and SHO Irfan Gill over negligence in duty.
In June, four children, aged between eight to 12 years, had gone missing while another minor Faizan, 8, disappeared on Monday night.
Apart from Faizan, the other children were identified as 12-year-old Muhammad Imran of Rana Town who went missing on June 3 and nine and eight year old Ali Husnain and Suleman Akram of Ghausiabad went missing on August 8 and Augist 17 respectively. According to locals, a fifith child has also gone missing.
One of the bodies was identified as that of Faizan, while the remains were believed to be of Ali and Suleman. Police are yet to find any clue about Imran's whereabouts. Faizan's funeral prayers were attended by a large number of people.
According to a post-mortem report dated September 17, the medical officer of THQ Hospital Chunian, namely Zuhaib Abid, said that Faizan died from “asphyxia due to fracture of hyoid bone because of strangulation and neck choking”. He confirmed that the boy was sodomised and tortured before being killed.
“Above mentioned injuries and act are antemortem (occurring or performed before death) in nature and are sufficient to cause death in the ordinary course of nature,” the officer stated, while adding that a final opinion would be given after receiving final reports from the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA).
Meanwhile, Punjab IGP said that different individuals were being investigated in connection with the incident, adding that three investigation teams were working on the case.
He also said that PFSA would conduct a DNA test on the remains of the three minors which would be matched with the suspects’ DNA. He vowed to give exemplary punishment to the culprits.
Chunian was struck by shock and fear when the three bodies were recovered by police on Tuesday. Locals believed that a child pornography ring was behind the rape and murder of the minor boys.
Later, District Police Officer (DPO) Abdul Ghaffar Qaisarani had said that sexual assault would be confirmed once the medical report was issued. He had denied the presence of any racket.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar also took notice of the incident and sought a report from IGP Khan. He ordered arrest of the killers at the earliest.
On Monday, protestors had assembled in Kasur against police failure to recover the missing minors and put a stop to child abductions.
In 2015, a child pornography ring was busted in Kasur by police which was widely reported in national and international media. In 2018, a minor, namely Zainab, was raped and murdered in the same city which sparked widespread outrage and protests.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari said on Wednesday that it was shocking to see cases of child abuse surfacing in Kasur.
She said that the Zainab Alert Bill was pending with the National Assembly Standing Committee on Human Rights, chaired by Pakistan People’s Party Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for months.
Mazari also said that her ministry had written a letter to the standing committee to forward the bill to National Assembly but the move has not materialised yet.
Angry protestors blocked main roads by burning tyres and chanting slogans against the police. They also surrounded the Chunian police station demanding immediate arrest of the culprits and putting an end to incidents of child abuse.
Following the demonstrations, IGP Khan ordered the suspension of Chunian DSP Naeem Warak and SHO Irfan Gill over negligence in duty.
In June, four children, aged between eight to 12 years, had gone missing while another minor Faizan, 8, disappeared on Monday night.
Apart from Faizan, the other children were identified as 12-year-old Muhammad Imran of Rana Town who went missing on June 3 and nine and eight year old Ali Husnain and Suleman Akram of Ghausiabad went missing on August 8 and Augist 17 respectively. According to locals, a fifith child has also gone missing.
One of the bodies was identified as that of Faizan, while the remains were believed to be of Ali and Suleman. Police are yet to find any clue about Imran's whereabouts. Faizan's funeral prayers were attended by a large number of people.
According to a post-mortem report dated September 17, the medical officer of THQ Hospital Chunian, namely Zuhaib Abid, said that Faizan died from “asphyxia due to fracture of hyoid bone because of strangulation and neck choking”. He confirmed that the boy was sodomised and tortured before being killed.
“Above mentioned injuries and act are antemortem (occurring or performed before death) in nature and are sufficient to cause death in the ordinary course of nature,” the officer stated, while adding that a final opinion would be given after receiving final reports from the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA).
Meanwhile, Punjab IGP said that different individuals were being investigated in connection with the incident, adding that three investigation teams were working on the case.
He also said that PFSA would conduct a DNA test on the remains of the three minors which would be matched with the suspects’ DNA. He vowed to give exemplary punishment to the culprits.
Chunian was struck by shock and fear when the three bodies were recovered by police on Tuesday. Locals believed that a child pornography ring was behind the rape and murder of the minor boys.
Later, District Police Officer (DPO) Abdul Ghaffar Qaisarani had said that sexual assault would be confirmed once the medical report was issued. He had denied the presence of any racket.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar also took notice of the incident and sought a report from IGP Khan. He ordered arrest of the killers at the earliest.
On Monday, protestors had assembled in Kasur against police failure to recover the missing minors and put a stop to child abductions.
In 2015, a child pornography ring was busted in Kasur by police which was widely reported in national and international media. In 2018, a minor, namely Zainab, was raped and murdered in the same city which sparked widespread outrage and protests.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari said on Wednesday that it was shocking to see cases of child abuse surfacing in Kasur.
She said that the Zainab Alert Bill was pending with the National Assembly Standing Committee on Human Rights, chaired by Pakistan People’s Party Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for months.
Mazari also said that her ministry had written a letter to the standing committee to forward the bill to National Assembly but the move has not materialised yet.