Violence against women surges in Pakistan as officials arrest two for abducting, selling women

Lahore [Pakistan], February 16 (ANI): Violence against women is on the surge in Pakistan as officials in Lahore have arrested the two people involved in the abduction of girls and selling them in other provinces, reported local media.
Two people involved in the abduction of girls and selling them in other provinces have been arrested, Dawn quoted SSP Investigations Lahore Imran Kishwar in a press conference at his office here on Tuesday.
The arrested suspects were proclaimed offenders (POs) and were identified as Faisal and Ashfaq Butt. In the recent past, they had lured a 19-year-old girl, Diya Akram, on the pretext of giving her a job and took her to Karachi, said the Pakistani publication.
According to Dawn, from there, they shifted her to Balochistan and sold her to a feudal of Jhal Magsi Balochistan. They were also wanted in other cases, the SSP said and added that one of the arrested suspects extracted over Rs10 million from a citizen after posing as an FIA officer.
Police arrested a man posing as an Elite official at the Shera Kot check post. The suspect identified as Zia-ul-Rehman posed as a cop of Elite force. On suspicion, police investigated and found him an imposter. Police arrested him and recovered a weapon after registering a case.
It came a report last year underlined that nearly a thousand minor girls and women from Pakistan's religious minorities including Hindus and Christians face violence and in most cases they are abducted, forcefully converted to Islam and are married off every year.
Citing an inquiry done by the British-led All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), Islam Khabar reported that the figure is an estimation based on extensive probe, but not accurate since "true numbers may never be ascertained.
"The report, which was published in September 2021 focuses on the cases of Christian and Hindu girls between the ages of 12-25, of religious minorities including Hindus (1.59 per cent) and Christians (1.60 per cent) of Pakistan's 220 million population, Islam Khabar reported. Buddhists, Sikhs and Kalash are also surveyed with the help of their representative bodies, field surveys and by individuals who appeared before the probe body. (ANI)