Five women 'raped' by Pak BMP personnel

The incident occurred on Thursday in the resort of Fort Munro, located in the tribal area of Suleman Range about 250 km from Lahore, the capital of Punjab, they said.

The BMP is a special force deployed in the tribal region that is part of Dera Ghazi Khan district.

The five women, all in their twenties, came to the region from Lahore with a male relative to visit Fort Munro, the officials said, adding they were stopped by BMP personnel staff at a check post and allegedly raped at a police station in the resort.

After the women submitted a complaint to the BMP commandant, authorities registered a case against three BMP personnel and two others who were allegedly involved in the incident.

Though the BMP commandant visited the area, he was not allowed to investigate the incident, media reports said.

The three BMP personnel linked to the incident were arrested but armed tribesmen freed them from the Fort Munro police station.

All five suspects are currently at large.

After a preliminary inquiry, the BMP has suspended the three personnel.

The women were sent to the Darul Aman, a women's home.

President Asif Ali Zardari took notice of the incident last night and directed the Punjab government to immediately submit a report.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif directed the Commissioner of Dera Ghazi Khan district to investigate the incident.