Rape case under WPA turns out to be eyewash | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Rape case under WPA turns out to be eyewash

ISLAMABAD: The first rape case lodged by a woman of the federal capital under the recently enacted Women’s Protection Act (WPA) has turned out to be eyewash.
The medical report in the case has negated the rape charge levelled by Dr Mamoona Anjum, a resident of I-10/1.The controversial WPA allows a woman to get an FIR registered against a person on the charges of rape merely on circumstantial evidence and without any fear of being punished for wrong accusation. When approached, Shahnaz Bokhari, a women’s rights activist, said: “The WPA should not be abused and misused. When a woman is victim, she should be helped, but if she misuses the law, she should be punished.” Dr Memoona Anjum, 37, wife of Rana Shafique Ahmad resident of Street 96, I-10/1, lodged a complaint with the Sabzi Mandi police station, saying that her husband has been in Saudi Arabia for a couple of years, and she has been living in her own house along with her son.

She said one Nazir Ahmad, a Grade-18 Scientific Officer at the Ministry of Science and Technology, had been living in a portion of the house for the last 10 years as a tenant while her husband bought the house two years back, and now she wanted to get it vacated, but Nazir was reluctant. She said the accused used to tease her, but she always ignored and didn’t complain to anybody to avoid any unpleasantness. “I was alone in my house when Nazir entered my room from the back-door at 1am and rapped me,” she said in her written complaint. “I straightaway went to the PIMS hospital after the rape for medical examination where Dr Sobia Luqman examined me,” she said.

Dr Sobia Luqman, Resident, Gynao/Obs, MCH Centre, PIMS hospital, in the medical report confirmed the offence, marking wounds on various parts of her body. The medical report confirmed the rape, saying the symptoms of rape were clearly found during the examination. She told the police that she was a doctor by profession but was not practising. She had two sons — one is an MBBS student while the other a student of Class 10. The Industrial Area police, on the basis of the preliminary medical report, registered the first case under the Protection of Women (Criminal Laws Amendment) Act, 2006 after the promulgation of the new law — 375/376 PPC — and arrested Nazir Ahmed and sent HVS (high virginal swab) and Rectal Swab (RS) for chemical examination to confirm the act of rape.

But the chemical examiner’s report, signed by Dr Basharat Hussain (Chemical Examiner, Rawalpindi) and Dr Khalid Abbas Janjua (Assistant Chemical Examiner) discarded the allegation of rape levelled by Dr Mamoona Anjum, saying the HVS and RS tests were negative for sperm. Additional Session Judge Islamabad, Chaudhary Abdul Qayyum, on the ground of medical examiner’s report, released Nazir Ahmad on bail.

Source: The News

Date:1/13/2007