2020 motorway gang rape case: LHC dismisses convicts' appeals against sentences

LAHORE: A Lahore High Court (LHC) division bench on Wednesday dismissed appeals filed by the two men convicted in the 2020 Sialkot-Lahore Motorway gang rape case against their sentences. An anti-terrorism court had handed down death sentences besides life imprisonment and multiple jail terms to the two convicts, Abid Ali alias Malhi and Shafqat Ali alias Bagga, on March 20, 2021. They challenged their convictions on March 25, 2021. The appeals contended that several infirmities created doubts about the prosecution’s version of the events and the trial court’s judgement was harsh and against the settled principles of law. A two-judge bench, comprising Justice Syed Shahbaz Ali Rizvi and Justice Tariq Mehmood Bajwa, issued the verdict on their appeals today after the prosecution concluded its arguments. In his final arguments, the state prosecutor contended that the prosecution had overwhelming evidence against the convicts and requested the court to uphold their sentences. He said there was no flaw in the trial court’s decision. The defence lawyers had completed their arguments before the prosecution’s final arguments. ‘Motorway rape’ The country seethed with anger in September 2020 as details had emerged of the gang rape on the outskirts of Lahore, with remarks by the then-city police chief implying that the rape survivor shared responsibility for her rape. The convicts had gang-raped a French woman of Pakistan-origin in front of her three children after dragging her out of her car that ran short of fuel and stopped during her late night travel on Sialkot-Lahore Motorway. The Gujjarpura police registered a first information report (FIR) of the incident on September 9, 2020 under multiple sections of the Pakistan Penal Code and the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.