LAHORE: After several botched attempts, the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) Lahore on Sunday arrested Mufti Aziz-ur-Rehman, who was booked for sodomizing a seminary student, during a raid in Mianwali.

Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Inam Ghani, while confirming the arrest of the accused by sharing Rehman’s picture standing behind a lockup, said that police would take it as a ‘test case’. “We will interrogate him, conduct scientific professional investigation, prosecute and get him convicted by the court. We want our kids protected from these child molesters and keep our society safe for our future,” he added in a tweet.

Model Town CIA Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Hasnain Haider, who led the raid to arrest the elderly cleric, told reporters that the accused was being transported to Lahore where he will be prosecuted. He said the mufti would be presented before a court in a day or two. Police said the cleric was arrested along with his son Altaf-ur-Rehman from the same place in Mianwali while his second son, Aqeeq-ur-Rehman, was arrested from Lahore.

The arrests came a day after a spokesperson for the Lahore police said Mufti Azizur Rehman had “escaped” but emphasised that the police were working on tracing the alleged rapist. He had said that several raids were conducted in different areas of the city to arrest the cleric but the suspect escaped.

The North Cantonment police registered a case against the mufti for sexually assaulting the student and his three sons for attacking the complainant with the intention to exact revenge.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021