No action against mob as Ichhra Bazaar incident resolved by clerics: Lahore Police

The Lahore police denied reports of taking any action against the mob that threatened and harassed a woman for wearing a dress with Arabic calligraphy.

Lahore Operations SSP Ali Raza stated that the issue was settled through the intervention of religious scholars representing various Islamic schools of thought.

He added that the clerics were satisfied with the police investigation, confirming the dress didn't contain any religious verses or offensive material.

The SSP commended the ASP Syeda Seherbano Naqvi and the officers for their exemplary conduct in handling the mob, emphasising that future incidents can be prevented by taking appropriate actions in similar volatile situations.

Gulberg Circle ASP Shehrabano Naqvi was also praised by Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif for rescuing a woman in Lahore’s Ichhra Bazaar from an enraged mob, who falsely accused the woman of committing blasphemy.

The inspector general of police (IGP) Usman Anwar has nominated ASP Naqvi for the Quaid-e-Azam Police Medal (QPM).

Earlier, in a statement on the microblogging site ‘X’, Chairman Pakistan Ulema Council Tahir Ashrafi stated that it was “unjustified” to ask the woman for an apology.

پاكستان علماء كونسل لاهور اچهره مين ايك خاتون كےلباس پر عربى كےالفاظ كى وجہ سے اس كو هراسان كرنےكى شديد مذمت كرتى هے اس موقعہ پر اچهره پوليس كى بهترين كوشش قابل تعريف هے ليكن خاتون سےمعافى كا كهنا بلا جواز تهامعافى تو هراسان كرنے والون كو مانگنى چاهے pic.twitter.com/ppamEQ5Z0y

— TahirMahmoodAshrafi حافظ محمد طاهراشرفى (@TahirAshrafi) February 25, 2024

"The Pakistan Ulema Council strongly condemns the harassment of a woman in Lahore for wearing a dress with Arabic calligraphy. The timely intervention of the Lahore police is commendable, but it was unjustified to ask the woman for an apology. The perpetrators of the harassment should be the ones to apologise," his post read.