Lahore: In a high-profile legal development, a Pakistani court has framed charges against eight individuals, including the grandson of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, in a disturbing case involving the gangrape and abduction of two foreign women.
An official confirmed on Wednesday that Additional District and Sessions Judge Rafaqat Ali Gondal of Lahore framed the charges against the accused on Tuesday. All eight individuals, who are currently in judicial custody and were produced before the court for the proceedings, pleaded not guilty.
According to PTI reports, the judge has directed the prosecution to present their witnesses on December 9, marking the formal commencement of the trial. The latest court action comes as a surprise after the Punjab Police had previously cleared Ishaq Dar’s grandson, Raza Dar, and four of his friends of the rape allegations in an initial report, controversially shifting the blame entirely onto Raza’s domestic staff.
The harrowing incident allegedly occurred in June this year. The two foreign victims, hailing from the Netherlands and Venezuela, travelled to Pakistan on a business trip. Medical examinations subsequently confirmed that both women had been subjected to sexual assault. Following the registration of their statements, both victims returned to their respective home countries.
Police reports reveal a convoluted backstory rooted in a financial dispute. The women reportedly first met Raza Dar in Singapore in 2025, proposing an investment in a cryptocurrency venture. After initially receiving returns, Dar allegedly invested over $500,000. However, when the women allegedly failed to provide subsequent profits or return the principal amount, Dar lured them to Pakistan under the pretext of meeting another potential investor.
The women stayed at a hotel in Islamabad and willingly travelled to the Murree hill resort before being taken to a house in Lahore’s Defence Housing Authority (DHA). There, they were allegedly held hostage by armed men who threatened them with knives, guns, and broken glass, warning them that they would be killed and their organs sold if they did not return the money.
The victims were allegedly coerced into transferring $19,500 during their captivity. They managed a dramatic escape when the vehicle transporting them to the Lahore airport met with an accident, allowing them to flee and seek help.