Suspect Muskan’s relationship with Azerbaijan national was limited to friendship, her lawyer tells court

Bureau Report

LAHORE: A local court in Lahore on Wednesday granted police a three-day physical remand of Muskan, a woman named in connection with the alleged rape of an Azeri woman.

The Azerbaijani woman had travelled to Pakistan for business purposes and was allegedly gang-raped by three men at a rented flat in Lahore’s Defence area on the night between Friday and Saturday.

Police later registered a case against the accused at Defence C police station.

Judicial Magistrate Azhar Mahmood heard the case at the Cantonment Courts, where the accused was presented before the court.

The prosecution told the court that this was Muskan’s first physical remand and argued that she could be kept in custody during the remand.

Muskan’s lawyer said her relationship with the Azeri woman was limited to friendship.

The defence argued that the accused could not be remanded apart from charges of murder and robbery, saying that there was nothing to recover from her.

During the hearing, the judicial magistrate asked Muskan if she wanted to undergo a medical examination.

The female suspect replied by saying that she did want a medical examination.

After hearing both arguments, the court approved the three-day remand and handed Muskan over to police custody.

A day earlier, a local court in Lahore granted police a six-day physical remand of two suspects in the alleged gang rape case.

In a separate development on Tuesday, Additional Sessions Judge Riffaqat Ali barred the police from arresting another female suspect in the alleged rape case until October 5 while hearing her petition for interim bail.

The court also directed the suspect to join the investigation and ordered police to submit an investigation report.