Punjab to pursue Lahore assault case despite complainant’s retraction

LAHORE: An Azerbaijani woman who previously accused three men of sexually assaulting her in Lahore has withdrawn her allegations against one suspect in a newly circulated video. The Punjab government, however, says it will continue pursuing the case on behalf of the state while investigators examine the conflicting accounts and available evidence.

In the video, the complainant said Ahmed Tanveer neither assaulted her nor took her mobile phone. She questioned the grounds for his arrest, maintained that her earlier account had been given under pressure and said she had also submitted documents to her country’s embassy declaring him innocent.

The woman further said she did not want to continue proceedings against the other accused and had forgiven them. Her latest position differs from the statement she previously recorded before a judicial magistrate under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, in which she accused three men of assaulting her after she was made to consume alcohol.

Deputy Inspector General of Investigation Zeeshan Raza said the earlier judicial statement remained part of the case record. He described the circulating video as an attempt to influence the investigation and said police would examine Tanveer’s alleged role before completing the inquiry on merit.

Police maintain that two arrested suspects implicated the third accused during the investigation. Tanveer was separately produced before a Model Town court in a case concerning the alleged abduction and torture of the woman, where investigators requested that he be sent to jail for an identification parade. The court reserved its decision on that request.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz alleged that members of a wealthy family connected to the accused offered the complainant between Rs15 million and Rs20 million to withdraw her claims. She also referred to an allegation that a judge who granted bail to an accused had been bribed, while stressing that the claim would require proof and raised serious questions about possible pressure on complainants.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari said the provincial government would pursue the matter as a state case. She said kidnapping and robbery provisions had also been included in the first information report and referred to statements and evidence that investigators believe require the proceedings to continue despite the woman’s revised position.

The case began after the foreign national travelled to Pakistan in September and later reported an alleged assault at a rented flat in Lahore’s Defence area. Police arrested multiple suspects, obtained a judicial statement from the complainant and continued searching for evidence connected with the accusations.

The retraction does not by itself establish the innocence or guilt of any accused, close the criminal proceedings or replace a judicial determination. Investigators and the courts must now assess the original statement, subsequent video, medical and forensic material, statements attributed to the accused and allegations of external influence before determining the case’s next legal course.