This is apropos a Business Recorder editorial “Woman gang-raped on board train” carried by the newspaper yesterday. While I commend the newspaper for highlighting the plight of rape victims I salute railways police and the woman for whatever they have done in response to this ghastly act committed by the most despicable people on earth.

Police deserve praise for visiting her home and convincing her to tell her distressing story and go to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for medical examination, which confirmed that she was gang-raped. An FIR was registered under two relevant sections of the Pakistan Penal Code that carry life imprisonment or death. Two of the three suspects have been arrested.

The sexual harassment of women, particularly of those who are not accompanied by their male family members during travel have become a routine affair in trains. The newspaper’s argument that “unfortunately, however, in the country some regular people don’t look upon sexual violence against women as a serious offense” says it all. The government must do something meaningful in order to arrest this heinous trend of rapes and gang-rapes one and for all.

Tahmina Kalam (Karachi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022