In a shocking turn of events, the ordeal of the Lahore-Sialkot motorway rape victim was described in all its anguish in a recent Pakistani drama, a journalist claimed on Monday.
Journalist Fereeha M Idrees revealed in a couple of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, how Geo Tv allegedly made money off the extreme pain and trauma of a rape survivor.
The posts claim that the survivor unexpectedly called Fareeha. She had spoken to her after her terrifying adventure on the motorway a few years prior, but she wasn’t prepared for her call just now.
It should be noted that a woman was gang-raped by people from whom she sought assistance on the motorway in September 2020, sparking anger and calls for women’s security. In March 2021, the perpetrators were given the death penalty under Section 376 (ii) of the Pakistani Penal Code.
According to Fareeh’s post, the survivor has maintained her privacy and has declined to meet anyone, including politicians, celebrities, and others. She merely wanted the offenders to be punished.
“Can…. Can… can someone make a drama in my life”? Were her first words. I had no idea that a drama serial named ‘Haadsa’ had been shown on Geo TV every weekday at 7 pm based on a motorway rape story,“ it said.
She wondered why the producers were making such a drama based on the trauma with which she went. She went on to ask whether it was harassment or not.
“Oh my God, I died watching that. I was numb. I was given a bath alive after the incident. Like they bathe dead bodies, that’s how I was bathed,” the survivor said, claiming she was on injectables for three days after trauma.
“If they [the makers] cared so much, they could look into the matter and see why the offenders have not received their punishment,” she said to Fareeha, “rather than choosing TRPs?”
The victim of a highway rape continued by saying that despite vowing never to enter the public eye, she was “thrown into it again.”
She stated in the post, “Every time someone knocks at the door noisily, my kids look at me with anxious eyes because they know I would be afraid.”
The survivor has demanded that the drama be stopped.
“You are aware of how our nation treats victims,” she said in the post. “Even if I dress up, it’s a crime; even if I smile, people condemn me; if I had died that night, they would have shown pity; now that I am alive, they guarantee I die.”
Fareeha said that she informed the PEMRA of this incident for them to take action, and she urged the NGOs supporting rape victims to speak out on this issue.
Source: MM News