For justice: LHC takes notice of molestation reports

One of the reports said Sadiq, a resident of Gogera, lured a woman on her way to see her sister and molested her. PHOTO: LHC.GOV.PK

LAHORE: Lahore High Court’s Complaint Cell on Tuesday took notice of media reports of three women being molested in three districts.

One of the reports said Sadiq, a resident of Gogera, lured a woman on her way to see her sister and molested her. Another report said a grade five student in Pakpattan’s Arazi Amer Singh village was kidnapped and taken to nearby fields. The men tried to molest her but her cries attracted some villagers who caught one of them while the other fled.

The girl’s parents said the investigation officer had been pressuring them to drop the charges. A third report said two sisters, residents of Kamalia, were on their way home when two men detained and molested them. Police are investigating the matter.

LHC has directed district and sessions judges of Okara, Pakpattan and Toba Tek Singh to submit reports on these cases within a week.

Published in GNN & Tribune, May 7th, 2014. (By Our Correspondent)

Anti-polio campaign: ‘Virus being transmitted to other areas from KPK’

The administration of polio drops to children coming from the FATA was the KPK government’s responsibility. PHOTO: FILE

LAHORE: Children travelling from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa into Punjab are carrying the polio virus with them, Advisor to Chief Minister Punjab on Health Khawaja Salman Rafique said on Monday. The environmental samples taken from Outfall Road’s sewerage water contained the virus similar to that circulating in the KPK.

He said thousands of children in KPK are deprived of polio vaccination.

He was speaking after administering polio drops in Santnagar to launch a three-day vaccination campaign in Lahore. Rafique said that due to the effective and concrete steps taken by the government, Punjab would become polio-free this year.

Rafique said politicians should not waste their energy on agitation but strive instead to eradicate polio from the country. Rafique said the Punjab government had taken concrete steps to eradicate polio but to root it out from the entire country it was necessary to ensure polio teams access to ‘no-go’ areas in all provinces.

Rafique said three anti-polio campaigns would be carried out in Lahore during May. He said the first campaign was being carried out from May 5 to 7, and the other two would be launched in the second and third week of May.

He said special anti-polio campaigns had been scheduled in 10 high risk districts: Dera Ghazi Khan, Lahore, Mianwali, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, Rawalpindi, Rahim Yar Khan, Sahiwal and Toba Tek Singh. Rafique said 773,000 children would be vaccinated during the three-day campaign in Lahore. The vaccination target for the 10 districts is about 5.2 million children.

Rafique said the top leadership in the Punjab was fully committed to the eradication of polio. He said the government had made arrangements for vaccinating children travelling by buses or trains through Punjab. He said check posts had been set up at all entry points of the province.

Rafique said the administration of polio drops to children coming from the FATA was the KPK government’s responsibility. He said there was a need for national spirit and commitment.

Published in GNN & Tribune, May 6th, 2014.