Meerwala gang-rape: Accused under house arrest
MULTAN, March 17,2005: Four men accused of gang-raping Mukhtar Mai in Meerwala village, and who were released from Dera Ghazi Khan jail on Wednesday evening, were put under house arrest by police when they got to the outhouse of Faiz Bakhsh Mastoi.
Salim Malik, counsel for the accused, said the Supreme Court of Pakistan had suspended the Lahore High Court Multan Bench’s orders, but did not issue orders for the “status quo”. Jail officials released four of the five accused as the Dera Ghazi Khan district and sessions judge had issued their release orders.
“We released Ghulam Fareed Mastoi, Faiz Bakhsh, Ramzan Pujar and Allah Ditta. Fayyaz Hussain wasnÂ’t released because he was involved in a theft while Abdul Khaliq Mastoi was taken to general barracks,” Kazim Baloch, Dera Ghazi Khan jail superintendent, told Daily Times.The four men got to their village late at night from Dera Ghazi Khan and the police was already there to confine them to the outhouse.
Also, Mukhtar Mai appealed to the Punjab government to imprison the men for 90 days so that she could pursue the case in the Supreme Court freely.
Officials said on Wednesday that they had posted more than two-dozen policemen outside Mukhtar’s home to guard her after four of the six men convicted of raping her were freed, agencies reported.
About 30 policemen were guarding the home, and the four men have been told “to stay away from Mukhtar Mai’s house”, a police official said. Mukhtar Mai confirmed that police were outside her house, but said she was still worried for her safety.
Source: Daily Times
Date:3/17/2005
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