Protest against murder of MA student in Faisalabad, Jaranwala

FAISALABAD: Students of Government College University Faisalabad Friday staged a demonstration against the rape and murder of their fellow student Abida.

They demanded immediate arrest of the killers and strict disciplinary action against the former SHO Gulberg police station, Basharat Ali, who had refused to register abduction case against the culprits.

The victim’s father had repeatedly contacted him for registration of a case but to no avail.

They warned that in case the abductors are not arrested immediately, students would spread their protest and march on the city roads.

Abida was buried in a local graveyard here.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had taken notice of the incident and asked for an inquiry report. Faisalabad CPO Ismail Athar Thursday visited the victim’s house here and assured arrest of the accused. No arrest has been made till this report was filed. The social media users are using the hashtag #JusticeForAbida on Twitter to demand swift action against the culprit(s).

The National Commission for Human Rights has taken notice of the murder and summoned a report from DPO Faisalabad.

Police authorities said they have nabbed a few people with the help of the deceased’s mobile phone data and are continuing efforts to arrest those responsible; however, no real progress has been made in the case yet. The deceased’s DNA samples have been sent to Lahore Forensic Laboratory.

For inaction over her alleged kidnapping, SHO Gulberg Police Station has been suspended.

The grieving family said the deceased was a gold-medallist and had recently won a laptop under the Prime Minister’s Laptop Scheme.