A video of a man said to be a lawyer and his cronies beating up a man at the office of a real estate agent in Gujranwala is going viral on social media.
In the video, which was shared on social media on December 11, the ‘lawyer’ and the victim are initially seen talking in a calm manner. Seconds later, the ‘lawyer’ removes the prayer cap from the head of the bearded man, saying, “Its [prayer cap’s] sanctity should not be violated.”
He then removes his shoe and starts smashing it on the head of the bearded man sitting next to him. Another man who was accompanying the ‘lawyer’ removed his shoe and started smashing it on the bearded man’s head.
An elderly bearded man tries to rescue the victim and succeeds in his effort after some time. The victim does not react at all. The entire incident can be seen in the video clearly.
گوجرانوالہ میں ایک شریف شہری کو وکیل صاحب تشدد کا نشانہ بناتے رہے،ویڈیو بھی بنائی،رج کے ذلیل کیا
چیف جسٹس صاحب کیا اس شہری کو انصاف مل سکتا ہے ؟@UsmanAKBuzdar @OfficialDPRPP @_NadeemZaidi @waqas_amjaad @ARYNEWSOFFICIAL @SarmadHameed4 @SAMAATV @ijazali7 pic.twitter.com/cqB4bnDcJF— LaLa Murtaza (@lalamurtaza251) December 11, 2021
As the video of the incident made its way to social media and drew a strong reaction from people, police authorities sprung into action and said that a case had been registered and the incident was being investigated.
Taking to their Twitter handle, Gujranwala’s capital police officer (CPO) said, “A case relating to the incident has been registered in Jinnah Road Police Station and merit will be upheld during the investigation.”
محترم، وقوعہ کی بابت تھانہ جناح روڈ میں مقدمہ درج ہے۔ تفتیش کے دوران میرٹ کو ملحوظ خاطر رکھا جائے گا۔
— CPO Gujranwala (@CPOGujranwala) December 10, 2021
The Punjab Police also responded to the incident via its Twitter handle. According to the Punjab Police, Gujranwala Police have registered a case of the incident. The accused have got an interim bail from the honourable court. Both parties have got cases registered against each other. Police are investigating the incident from all angles.”
گوجرانولہ پولیس نےاس واقعہ کا مقدمہ درج کیا ہے ملزمان معزز عدالت سے عبوری ضمانت پر ہیں۔ دونوں پارٹیوں نے ایک دوسرے کے خلاف مقدمات درج کروائے ہوئے ہیں۔پولیس تمام پہلوؤں سے معاملے کی تفتیش کر رہی ہے۔ https://t.co/wc6yRU3yW5
— Punjab Police Official (@OfficialDPRPP) December 11, 2021
Incidents of violence involving lawyers are very common in Pakistan because they are rarely punished for their extrajudicial actions.