98 held in TikToker assault case freed
Prosecution fails to produce proof before Lahore court
ALahore court has ordered the police to set free 98 suspects in the assault of a TikToker after the prosecution failed to produce any evidence of their involvement in the incident.
Ayesha Akram, the TikToker who was assaulted by a mob in the Greater Iqbal Park at Lahore’s national monument, Minar-e-Pakistan, on the country’s Independence Day on Aug. 14, had a day earlier identified six persons out of the 104 arrested by police on the suspicion of their involvement in the assault.
104 were held
Judicial Magistrate Sarfaraz Cheema held the hearing where 98 arrested persons were brought. The police informed the court 104 persons were arrested with the help of video clips and assistance from the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).
However, the court was informed that during the identification parade, the TikToker could identify only six of them. Following this the magistrate directed the police to set free all those who were not identified by Akram.
According to Lahore police, the six arrested were the main accused in the incident. They will be tried in court of law and it will be ensured that they are convicted for assaulting a helpless woman in front of hundreds of silent spectators, the police added.
Sickening crime
The incident took place on Aug. 14 when the local TikTok star went to the Minar-ePakistan for filming a video. There, a large number of visitors, mostly youth, molested and harassed her.
They tore her clothes, pushed and pinched her and subjected her to sexual harassment. The footage showed the attackers laughing at Akram and using abusive language.
The incident when reported on local and social media shocked the nation and the police after public pressure registered FIRs against 400 unidentified persons for assaulting the complainant, molesting and stripping her.