Sargodha District Police Officer (DPO) Dr Rizwan, during the hearing of Sobia Batool abduction case on Monday, submitted to the Supreme Court (SC) a report which laid bare the recovery of as many as 151 abducted girls by police in Sargodha division, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
A three-member SC bench, headed by Justice Maqbool Baqir, expressed its astonishment over the abduction of so many girls in a small division and termed it incompetence and failure of the police. The report also reveals that 21 of the abducted girls were recovered from brothels.
Justice Maqbool Baqir expressed his discontentment over the delay by police in the recovery of the abducted girls despite registration of first information reports (FIR) at the police stations concerned.
The DPO informed the court that a search for the recovery of Sobia Batool and other abducted girls was underway, adding that the police also arrested 16 suspects in different cases of abduction. The DPO also informed the court that some of the girls recovered by police were carrying marriage certificates to which Justice Maqbool Baqir said that marriage certificates could be forced.
The apex court then ordered the Punjab inspector general of police (IGP) for stringent measures to ensure the recovery of the abducted girls across Punjab.
It also asked the police to speed up efforts for the recovery of Sobia Batool, rejecting the bail plea of suspect Umair in the case.
It is to be noted here that 18-year-old Sobia Batool, a resident of the Hussain Shah area of Sargodha, had mysteriously gone missing on August 18, 2020.
An FIR was registered at Sargodha’s Shahpur police station on August 28, 2020 under the provisions of kidnapping. Since then, no trace of the girl has been found.
Reporter: Amanat Gashkori