An 18-year-old Catholic woman in Pakistan said police have refused to arrest a Muslim who abducted and raped her at gunpoint last week.
Imaan Khurrum of Punjab Province told a Christian news channel on YouTube that Ansar Shah abducted her on 7 November as she was returning home from work. Shah took her to an abandoned brick kiln and tortured and raped her. Khurrum, who released her name to the news outlet, said Shah seized her on a deserted street and forced her onto his motorcycle, and when she resisted, he pulled out a pistol and threatened her and her two younger brothers.
“He threatened to kill my brothers and forced me to sit on his motorcycle,” she said, her voice shaky and face veiled in the video. “After reaching the kiln, he dragged me into a room, tore my clothes and raped me. During this time, he repeatedly slapped and beat me up.”
For more than four months Shah had been harassing her as she made her way to work to support her family; her relatives complained to Shah’s family, but the harassment continued. Her mother, Sana Khurrum, said that her drug-addicted husband had abandoned the family two years ago, casting them into a severe financial crisis.
“My daughter was targeted because we are poor and weak Christians,” she said in the video.
Imaan Khurrum and her mother said that despite repeated pleas to the police, officers have not arrested the suspect. Imaan Khurrum’s uncle, Morris Nazir, said the suspect was roaming freely without fear of arrest.
“[More than] a week has passed since the rape, but the police have not arrested Shah,” Nazir told sources. “They briefly took his two relatives into custody but released them after taking a bribe.”
Nazir said Shah’s relatives were using various tactics to pressure her family to withdraw the First Information Report, and that police inaction indicated Shah’s family has influenced officers.
“The Punjab chief minister and inspector general of police should take notice of our plight and order immediate arrest and prosecution of the accused,” Nazir said. “Shah must be punished for his crime; failure to do so will put other Christian girls also at risk of being attacked.”
Costs and lack of resources are the most prominent barriers for minorities in obtaining justice in Pakistan, according to rights advocates.
Submit a Prayer