May 11, 2026
By Aitzaz Ibrahim
LAHORE
The Lahore High Court has acquitted a man convicted in a rape case from Rahim Yar Khan, ruling that serious flaws in the investigation, contradictions in witness statements and defects in the handling of DNA evidence created reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case. The judgment highlighted concerns regarding weak investigations and improper handling of forensic evidence in criminal cases.
A two-member bench of the Lahore High Court’s Bahawalpur Bench, comprising Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh and Justice Muhammad Amjad Rafiq, announced the judgment while allowing Criminal Appeal by Shafiq Ahmad against his conviction in a rape case registered at Police Station Saddar Khanpur, District Rahim Yar Khan.
According to the case record, the complainant alleged in April 2022 that the accused had raped her around seven months earlier in a sugarcane field where she had gone to cut grass for cattle. She stated that due to social shame and fear, she and her family initially remained silent and later approached police after a medical examination revealed that she was seven month pregnant.
A trial court had convicted the accused under Section 376 of the Pakistan Penal Code in December 2023 and sentenced him to 10 years imprisonment along with a fine and compensation for the complainant. However, the Lahore High Court overturned the conviction after finding major gaps in investigation of the case.
In its detailed judgment, the court observed that although delays in reporting sexual assault cases are not uncommon because victims often remain silent due to trauma and social stigma, the prosecution must still establish its case beyond reasonable doubt.
The bench noted several contradictions in the complainant’s testimony and observed that her account regarding resistance during the alleged incident and raising alarm contained inconsistencies. The court further remarked that the prosecution failed to convincingly establish the presence of eyewitnesses who allegedly reached the scene after hearing cries for help.
The court expressed serious concern regarding the handling of DNA evidence and the investigation process. It observed that the investigating officer failed to properly establish the identity of the child allegedly born as a result of the rape. No birth certificate, hospital record or testimony of any doctor or midwife was presented during trial proceedings.
The bench further noted that the child was never produced before the trial court and no proper identification process was carried out before DNA samples were collected.
The court ruled that although DNA evidence is admissible in law, its evidentiary value depends on proper procedures being followed during collection, preservation and transfer of samples. It observed that in the present case, the possibility of substitution, mistake or manipulation could not be ruled out because crucial foundational facts had not been established.
The Lahore High Court also criticized both the police investigation and prosecution, observing that the case had been mishandled at multiple stages. The court remarked that poor investigation, weak prosecution and improper handling of evidence were among the key reasons behind low conviction rates in Punjab. The bench directed the Prosecutor General Punjab and the Inspector General of Police Punjab to improve coordination between police and prosecutors and arrange training programs for investigators and prosecutors.
The accused was ordered to be released if he was not required in any other case.
The judgment comes months after another similar case in which the Lahore High Court acquitted Muhammad Arif, who had spent nearly six years in prison after being convicted in a rape and murder case involving a 19-year-old girl.
In that case, the prosecution had alleged that the accused raped the girl, slit her throat and dumped her body in fields in 2019. However, during appeal proceedings, the Lahore High Court found that the prosecution case mainly relied on technical and circumstantial evidence, while there was no direct eyewitness linking the accused to the alleged crime.
Justice Tariq Nadeem, while issuing an judgment in March 2025, observed that although DNA evidence is an important tool in modern criminal investigations, courts must ensure that samples are collected, preserved and transferred according to legal procedures. The court held that if the chain of custody is not properly established and samples are not securely transmitted to forensic laboratories, such evidence cannot be considered fully reliable.
The court further ruled that DNA reports are expert opinions and cannot alone become the sole basis for conviction where other evidence is weak or doubtful. The prosecution had relied on “last seen” witnesses who claimed they had seen the victim going toward fields with the accused before the incident. However, the court held that such evidence was inherently weak without strong independent corroboration.
The Lahore High Court also observed in that case that the medical report did not conclusively confirm rape, which further weakened the prosecution story. After reviewing the evidence, the court concluded that the prosecution had failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt and acquitted the accused.
Both judgments have drawn attention to recurring concerns regarding defective investigations, weak evidence collection procedures and mishandling of forensic material in serious criminal cases in Punjab.