Lahore [Pakistan], August 17 (ANI): Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called for an independent judicial tribunal into the deaths of two young women, Amina and Anmol, who died within hours of being taken into police custody at Lahore’s Township Police Station.
In a statement posted on X on behalf of the HRCP chairperson, the rights body said the women were taken into custody on August 4 over allegations of theft and that “conflicting official accounts have emerged over the sequence of events, the timing of their deaths, their ages, and whether they were alive when taken to hospital.”
The statement said police initially attributed the deaths to cardiac arrest, but the final post-mortem reports remain pending. It also highlighted discrepancies between the family’s account and official records. While relatives reportedly said the women had visible bruises and dried blood, official documents recorded no external injuries.
The HRCP report further questioned the preliminary post-mortem findings, stating that the two reports contained “remarkably similar medical observations.” It also raised concerns over the reported absence of women police officers during the detention, delays in informing the family and the extent of police control over the post-mortem process, burial and subsequent access to the gravesites.
The statement said allegations portraying the women as drug users were “unsupported by the available evidence.” Although a judicial inquiry has been initiated under Section 176 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Butt said the circumstances demanded an independent process.
“The cumulative inconsistencies in this case demand a more credible and independent process,” the HRCP chairperson said, according to the statement. He urged the Punjab government to establish a judicial tribunal headed by a sitting judge of the Lahore High Court, with full powers to summon witnesses, compel the production of evidence and publish its findings within a fixed timeframe.
The HRCP chairperson also called for an independent forensic examination of the bodies, including exhumation if necessary, and urged authorities to secure and review complete CCTV footage and independently verify the official timeline of events. The statement further sought immediate protection and legal assistance for the women’s family, citing concerns over their vulnerable socioeconomic circumstances and possible intimidation while seeking justice. (ANI)