They say that the law is blind and it becomes absolutely true when we talk about the Punjab police when they handle the crimes. In a very strange case of mugging and raping in Faisalabad in September, police advised the victim party to register only dacoity case and let go of rape case for the sake of family honour, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Saturday.

The affected family tried to lodge the case and had been visiting various police stations and kept on going to higher authorities in police department for the last five months but to no avail. 

However, after all these months, the city police arrested a group of dacoits who confessed to committing different incidents of robbery and also confessed to committing rape. Then the police realized that it was the same rape case reported by the victim family. Realizing this, the police officials went to the house of the victim family and extended their apology to them.

According to details, on Sept 11, a family hailing from Jaranwala hired a car. They were going to Faisalabad. While on their way, the family was intercepted by some goons in Tandlianwala. The criminals snatched their car, looted jewellery, mobile phones and cash from them and also took the family consisting of husband, wife and their children to their place. 

The dacoits tied the hands of the whole family and blindfolded them. Then they locked them in a room and took the woman to another room. Where six dacoits gang-raped the woman. After committing the heinous crime, they left the family under a bridge at the daybreak. 

When the husband went to the police to register an FIR against dacoits, the SHO wrote a complaint of dacoity only and did not mention the rape incident. He advised the aggrieved husband to not pursue the rape case as it would bring shame to the fair name of the family. 

But the poor husband ran from pillar to post to get his complaint registered. But no one paid any heed to him. 

However, after five months, justice was done by God. The same group of dacoits was arrested in another crime incident. During interrogation, among other crimes, they also confessed to the rape incident in Tandlianwala.

When the police were writing down their crime report, they thought it fit to inform the Jaranwala family to save their honour. So CCPO Faisalabad Ghulam Mubashar Makeen went to their house and apologized from the distressed family. 

In the latest development, the rape victim has changed her statement, now saying she did not sexual assault did not mean she was raped. 

One wonders is it enough that police seek forgiveness after so many months and turn a blind eye to crimes and let the crime culture thrive in society. It’s tantamount to abet crime on their part. It’s time the police culture was changed in real sense and government must take cognizance of it.