CM Punjab dismisses ‘fabricated’ alleged college rape incident

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz dismissed “rumours spread on social media” related to the alleged on-campus rape of a student in Lahore, terming it a “fabricated story”.

The news related to the alleged rape of the student went viral on social media, prompting the police to arrest a security guard at the college who was allegedly involved in the incident.

Police said victim could not be identified or located and nobody from her family came forward to register a first information report (FIR). Police added that CCTV footage of the college along with hospital records had been checked.

Addressing the issue in a press conference in Lahore, the chief minister said that an issue was made out of an incident that “never existed in the first place”.

“The alleged rape incident was a fabricated story with no basis in reality,” CM Maryam said. “The girl [in the viral video] is not a rape victim, but a victim of bad politics and a conspiracy.”

Speaking about the student-led demonstration in the city against the incident, she said that “some of the protesters were not even students. Our opposition party launched them.”

“Whoever was behind this, I will not spare them. Journalists and social media users, who provoked and incited the students, and disrespected the girl and her family, we have found their accounts,” she said, vowing that there will be a crackdown against them. “The problem is PTI, social media is not the problem. They use social media as it does not show their faces.”

CM Maryam revealed that the girl’s family approached her and requested that “those who fabricated this story be exposed.”

“Chaos is being spread across Punjab based on lies, especially during the SCO summit when foreign dignitaries are visiting Pakistan.”

Maryam said that a “plan was hatched” to mislead and instigate students through social media deliberately and accused the PTI of fueling rumours and using them to its advantage.

Contesting the details of the case, the CM said, “The basement had no locks, Rescue 1122 never went despite their claims and even the ‘witness’ said she heard about the incident from someone else.

“I am not only a CM but I also represent women — this is my red line,” Maryam continued. “If a rape had happened, I would have acted before anyone said anything.”

In a later post on X, CM Maryam said the person “who propagated a blatant lie, incited violence and provoked the students has been arrested”.

“I will not spare anyone who was part of the conspiracy and false propaganda that have gravely affected an innocent girl and her family alleging a rape that never happened.”

Viral video

Meanwhile, a video featuring a girl began going viral on social media, with users claiming that she was the alleged rape victim. Lahore’s Defence A police station registered an FIR related to the case.

According to the FIR, the parents of the girl in the viral video categorically denied any incident of rape, saying that their daughter had been hospitalised from October 2-11 following an injury from a fall at home.  The parents of the girl maintained that making their daughter’s video go viral was a deliberate attempt to malign her reputation.

‘No eyewitnesses’

The chief minister added that there were no eyewitnesses “as the incident does not exist”. She introduced a girl sitting next to her whose video statement had gone viral on social media. In the video, the girl claimed that she was one of the witnesses of the incident.

“This girl is not even from the campus where the alleged incident occurred,” Maryam revealed. She added the clip was edited and the so-called “eyewitness” had heard it from someone else, after which a teacher had asked her to talk to the media.

Concluding her remarks, the chief minister requested the Lahore High Court or any other high court to look into the matter.

‘The incident does not exist’

Senior directors of the Punjab Group of Colleges said that there was no evidence that a student had been raped on campus after reports spread online sparked days of protests.

“The incident does not exist. I will resign and I will leave this profession and stand with the students if the incident took place,” Arif Chaudry, the director of the private Punjab Group of Colleges that runs the women’s college, told reporters.

Agha Tahir Ijaz, another of the group’s directors, told the same news conference: “We want the kids to understand that they should not believe misinformation.”

Police Police statement

On Oct 14, Punjab Police shared a post showing ASP Defense Shehrbano Naqvi urging people to verify news and trust the police investigation. She stated that misinformation spread on various platforms led to a law-and-order situation in Lahore.

Late that day, Police posted a video across social media platforms featuring Naqvi with the father and paternal uncle of a student from the college where the incident occurred.

Naqvi declared the incident misinformation, while the uncle stated their daughter had fallen at home on October 2 and was admitted to Ittefaq Hospital on October 4 due to serious backbone injuries.

Naqvi reiterated that an FIR could be lodged based on credible information, but a victim or proof of the incident was necessary.

Girl’s father, uncle statement

On October 15, Naqvi once again asserted in another video that the law and order situation in Lahore was based on misinformation.

“We are standing in a government hospital right now, and we have checked records at not only this hospital but at a private hospital too which is being mentioned on social media, and no record of admission of a patient who was raped could be found.”

She noted that the private hospital in question doesn’t handle medico-legal cases and appealed to students not to jeopardize their and the nation’s future.

Govt’s stance

Punjab government formed a high-powered committee to investigate the alleged assault at PGC Campus 10. The committee’s initial finding rejected claims of any form of assault at the campus.

Led by Punjab’s Secretary of Interior, the committee visited the home of the alleged victim, interviewing the girl and her parents for three hours.

They also recorded statements from 36 individuals, including Lahore DIG Operations Faisal Kamran, Principal Dr. Saadia Javed, security personnel, and students.

On Monday, Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikander visited the campus and told the media that CCTV videos at the campus had been deleted. Sikander also revoked the registration of Campus 10.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari maintained that the opposition had spread this propaganda to impact the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting in Islamabad and incite students.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) established a seven-member committee after the girl’s family and the college administration requested cases be filed under cybercrime law. An FIR has also been registered under Pakistan Electronics Crime Act 2016.