Punjab CM forms committee to probe rape, murder of minor girl in Chichawatni

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday formed a committee to probe the alleged rape of a minor girl before she was set alight in Chichawatni. The committee will be led by the Sheikhupura regional police officer (RPO).

Noor Fatima, a second-grade student, had gone missing on Sunday evening after she left home to buy some sweets. When she did not return after a while, her family members and neighbours started looking for her and found her in a street in an unconscious state, with burns all over her body.

She was taken to Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) Hospital, from where she was referred to Jinnah Hospital in Lahore due to her critical condition. According to doctors, she had received 70 to 80 per cent burns. The girl died during treatment late on Monday night. The body was handed over to the family after post-mortem.

The brutal incident sparked street protests and a shutter-down strike in her hometown.

The protesters raised slogans as the girl’s body was carried for funeral prayers. Carrying banners appealing for justice, the protesters demanded that the culprits behind the girl’s murder be hanged.