The Progressive Students Collective (PSC) held an anti-harassment rally on Tuesday, a day after 28 students were injured in clashes with a college’s security team and then with the police in Lahore during a protest against the alleged on-campus rape of a girl.
On Sunday, a security guard was arrested after news related to the incident went viral on social media. According to a police statement, the suspect had been arrested and an investigation was underway.
It, however, added that a first information report (FIR) of the incident had not been registered as the family members of the victim had not come forward to lodge it.
The Punjab government also formed a “high-powered” committee to probe the incident. A notification issued by the CM Office said the chief secretary would head the committee, which also included the advocate general and secretaries of home, higher education, special education, and healthcare departments.
Separately, Punjab police, in a post on X, said that if anyone had “any information regarding the alleged rape” in Lahore, they should “immediately inform the authorities via by either calling 15 or through the Women Safety App.
“The name of the whistleblower will be kept confidential,” the police said.
Enraged by the alleged incident, students mobilised on social media and staged protests outside different colleges in the city on Monday. During one of the protests, clashes broke out between the protesters and the security team of a college. Later on, the students also clashed with the police, with both clashes resulting in casualties.
According to a statement issued by Rescue 1122, a clash broke out between security personnel and students at the Hafeez Centre Punjab College Campus.
On Tuesday, the PSC held a rally from Government College University to Punjab Assembly. In a statement on X this morning, the group had called demonstrators to join the protest at 10:30am. The rally demanded a probe into yesterday’s violence on students, the Punjab College rape case, and incidents of harassment at Lahore Women’s College. They called for the formation of a committee comprising independent human rights organisations, student representatives, and judges. They also demanded that an anti-harassment committee be formed on various campuses and representation of students, especially one female student, should be ensured.
The rally’s third demand was that an awareness campaign be started on laws and procedures related to harassment, with awareness guidelines included in the curriculum,
Source:dawn.com/news
Thursday, April 23, 2026
