A female student in Lahore has alleged on social media that a man has been threatening her from 2016 with rape and murder, while posting videos of him intimidating her with weapons. As Pakistan’s social climate got tense because of the recent incidents of violence against women, the issue added to the discussion and went viral online on September 14.
A message thread shared on Twitter claimed that a student named Fatima Amir Sheikh was being threatened by a man named Ibsham Zahid.
The youngster claimed that Zahid was harassing her from 2016 and the police continue to refuse to arrest him despite a First Information Report (FIR) registered against him.
Sheikh shared screenshots of the abusive messages sent allegedly from Zahid on social media after the police’s failure to act.
She claimed that the accused not only harassed her with rape and murder threats but also sent a threatening video showing her weapons in his house.
Sheikh further alleged that after she got a case registered against him, he threatened to rape her before her family and kill her father.
The plea gained support from netizens as #ibshamzahidbehindthebars and ‘Fatima’ trended online on Monday.
Talking about the issue as well as women’s safety in the country, tweep @daacshb wrote: “People like Ibsham Zahid believe that they can get away with harassment, rape and even murder. Why do they believe that? Because [the] constitution is just a piece of paper in Pakistan. There is no certainty of punishment, effective policing and immediate enforcement of law. #ibshamzahidbehindthebars”
The issue was reported on local news channels as social media users united to raise their voice against the alleged harassment.
Sharing a picture of a news broadcast, Twitter user @onl331 posted: “Finally on news #ibshamzahidbehindthebars”
Amidst the campaign against Zahid, a social media user named Maroosh Minhaj, claiming to be his sister, shared her side of the story and claimed that he is a minor and suffering from a mental illness.
Some reports suggest that Zahid plans to leave Pakistan to flea arrest. No further comments from the police have emerged about the incident.
