Police on Saturday produced in an anti-terrorism court (ATC) a TikToker woman who claimed to be the mother of a girl who was allegedly raped on a Punjab College campus in Lahore a few weeks ago.
Accused Sara Khan was arrested on November 1. She was on a judicial remand and she was produced in the court on completion of her remand. On police’s request, the court extended Sara’s judicial remand for another 14 days and directed the police to produce her in the court again on December 14.
Anti-Terrorism Court’s Admin Judge Manzar Ali Gul heard the case. Police told the court that investigation is complete and challan against Sara is being prepared. Police said that two mobile phones have been recovered from Sara. Police said that Sara’s video has been sent for forensic analysis, which involves a voice matching test and a photogrammetric test.
In her viral video which surfaced after the Punjab College rape case news broke out, the police said, Sara made a false claim that she is the mother of the affected girl. Police said that Sara posted this misleading video on social media to garner views. Police said that Sara spread a fake news and triggered violent protests. Police said that Sara’s video incited violence and spread fear among students. Police said that Sara’s video resulted in protests against the college and clashes between police and the students.
Protests broke out in Lahore in October after social media reports suggested that a girl student was raped in the basement of the Punjab College’s girls campus. Police arrested a security guard who was identified in online posts but said no victim had come forward and that they had not been able to verify the rape allegation.
The protests spread to campuses across Lahore as well as the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where police fired tear gas and charged at the students, who have accused the authorities of a cover-up.
Sarah was arrested by the Organised Crime Unit (OCU) of Lahore police. The OCU Model Town police acted after a case was lodged against Sara with the Gulberg Police Station.
OCU DIG Imran Kishwar told the media that a police team arrested Sara when she went to the Lahore High Court to get bail in another case registered against her by the cybercrime wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). He said that Sara is a resident of Karachi and her permanent address has been traced in Multan. \