Lahore police granted 3-day physical remand of woman in connection with Azeri national's rape case

On September 27, Lahore police were granted a three-day physical remand for a 20-year-old Azerbaijani woman accused of being a victim of a gang rape. The incident occurred on September 25-26 when the woman allegedly met three men in a rented flat near Raiwind, a suburb of Lahore. The complainant, who had traveled to Pakistan for business, identified two of the men in her statement and alleged that the third had joined them during the attack.

Two of the accused had already been arrested and received a six-day physical remand on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the woman suspect appeared before Judicial Magistrate Azhar Mahmood at the Cantonment Courts. The prosecutor argued that as a woman, the suspect should be allowed physical remand due to potential vulnerability. The suspect's counsel contended that as she was merely a friend of the complainant, her relationship with her was limited and physical remand could not be sought except in cases of murder or robbery.

When asked if she wished to undergo a medical examination, the suspect declined. The magistrate consequently granted the three-day physical remand, directing the suspect's custody to be from sunrise to sunset and rest in jail under judicial custody. This is the second such case in Lahore's Defence C police station area within the last four months; in June, two foreign women nationals of the Netherlands and Venezuela were also reportedly abducted and sexually assaulted in the same area.