Prime Minister Imran Khan took serious notice and resolves the issue of a widow using the help of the Punjab police. She told him by a telephonic call that the brother of an SSP-ranked police officer had not been paying her outstanding rent amount of Rs500,000.
In a conversation with the premier, Ayesha Mazhar described how she was abused by police officer Zeeshan Asghar, and his brother Imran Asghar for the past two years. Zeeshan is the former SSP Investigation in Lahore now posted to Balochistan.
Ayesha’s call went viral on social media, raising questions about the criminal justice system and the parliamentarians who violated her rights.
In 2019, her mother [also a widow] leased her house at DHA Rahbar housing society in Lahore to Imran. According to her, Imran first occupied her house illegally, then refused to pay rent.
Her mother who was pursuing the case developed cancer, and she (Ayesha) took on this challenge and would travel from Quetta to Lahore to seek support from local politicians and police officials, but to no avail.
Additionally, the woman told the PM that she first saw this issue during the tenure of DIG Umar Sheikh, when he was serving as Lahore CCPO. He had gotten her house vacated from Imran in December last year. CCPO had also pressured Imran to pay his debt. In the meantime, Sheikh was transferred.
Her family was homeless for two years
When her house was illegally occupied, Zeeshan was serving as Lahore SSP (Investigation) at that time, leaving her family homeless for about two years. The mainstream media then became aware of the issue. Despite efforts of the newly appointed CCPO, she told the premier, Imran asked for a stay order against payment of dues.
In a live call, Ayesha urged PM to discuss the issue with the chief justice of Pakistan. To ask about why courts grant unnecessarily prolonged stays in such cases. Following the woman’s call, PM Secretariat contacted the Punjab police IG and resolved the issue of the widow.
“Due to the intervention of the IGP, the outstanding amount of Rs472,000 has been paid by the former tenant to the aggrieved lady Ayesha Mazhar,” read a tweet of the Punjab police.
As per the statement, Imran has also withdrawn the civil case that he filed against Ayesha.
Although the action taken by the Punjab police is quite laudable, it is still unfortunate that citizens have to call the premier to get their matters resolved. Luckily, she got the opportunity to talk to the PM, but what about the others?
Earlier, a retired teacher and a mother also appealed to PM Imran Khan to get her plot back from the land grabber but no action was taken.
Story Courtesy: Dawn
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