Okara police team to probe kidnapping, week-long torture of woman lawyer

OKARA: A police team has been formed to probe the kidnapping and week-long torture of a woman lawyer who was recovered from Mailsi, the district police officer (DPO) said Monday.

The DPO, while formally announcing the woman's recovery, said the special police team was tasked with searching for and arresting the kidnappers. The team comprises superintendent of police (SP) for investigation, Shamsul Haq, and two deputy superintendents of police (DSPs), he added.

The police officer noted that a first information report (FIR) — including charges of kidnapping — was registered on behalf of the woman's son. The special team was investigating the case in light of her recorded statement.

The woman has been shifted to the Dipalpur tehsil headquarters (THQ) hospital, the police officer said.

A resident of Dipalpur, police had said she was recovered in a semi-conscious state from a field near Dhoda Road in Mailsi. She was found with her hands and legs tied and unable to speak due to a cloth covering her mouth, they added.

The day she was recovered, police said she told them she had been kidnapped from her office by unidentified men on August 14.

Further investigation was underway, police added.

Earlier today, the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) had issued a statement condemning incidents of targeted killings, kidnappings, and incidents of torture of lawyers.

In the statement, PBC Vice Chairperson Abid Saqi strongly condemned the incident, saying the increasing lawlessness in Pakistan was extremely concerning. Five lawyers have been shot dead in targeted killing so far, including four in Punjab and one in Sindh, he said.

Three lawyers in Lahore, Pakpattan, Sialkot were kidnapped and tortured, Saqi added.

The PBC official said the torture and abduction of the woman lawyer was extremely worrisome. The woman lawyer, he added, was tortured continuously for six days after her abduction.

She was recovered in a very critical condition in the fields in Mailsi, he added.

Saqi further said these incidents of violence have made lawyers vulnerable and their safety compromised. The government's indifference to targeted killings, kidnappings, and violence in just three weeks was reprehensible, he added.

It was the duty of the government and the administration to improve the law and order situation, he said, lamenting that the incumbent leadership had failed to protect its citizens.

The official said the current situation called into question the ability of the government. He demanded action against those involved in the targeted killings, kidnapping, and torture of lawyers.