Police in Bahawalpur have booked the principal of a private college after a first-year student, 17, alleged that he assaulted her in his office on November 3. The Bahawalpur college principal case was registered on the complaint of the girl’s father, and no arrest has been made so far.
The Musafirkhana police registered the case. The complaint says the girl was waiting at the college gate to leave for home when the principal took her into his office and allegedly raped her. The college is in mauza Khanpur Mirchan.
The father said his daughter told him about the assault when she returned home. He said his biradari had stopped him from going to the police at first, but he then filed the complaint. A Musafirkhana police official told Dawn that the case was under investigation.
The victim’s parents have appealed to the Punjab chief minister to direct the police to act at once and arrest the suspect.
The Bahawalpur college principal case in context
The case has come as Punjab sets up child protection committees in every district. The committees will teach children about good and bad touch, physical boundaries, and how to spot and report inappropriate behaviour, and will also cover cyberbullying, harassment, grooming, exploitation, safe social media use and privacy.
The move follows stark figures from the National Commission on the Rights of Child: police registered 17,348 cases of sexual offences against children across Pakistan in 2025, and nearly 74 per cent of them were in Punjab. Punjab Police registered 33,449 first information reports on child rights violations and sexual abuse that year, with 4,727 convictions — though that FIR figure covers a wider range of offences, so not all 33,449 were sexual abuse cases.
Punjab plans three regional school education secretariats as part of a wider overhaul of school administration, and the child protection committees form part of that work. Former Punjab Teachers Union president Allah Rakha Gujjar has said the child protection helpline 1121 needs wider publicity, and that the good and bad touch lessons must suit the age of the children.
What the courts show
Cases of this kind often turn on the quality of the investigation and the evidence placed before the court. Rawalpindi courts heard 63,824 cases between January and October 2026 and decided 6,405 of them, with 4,745 acquittals and 1,660 convictions; in that period, no accused was convicted in eight cases of child sexual abuse heard by the district courts.
In Okara, police arrested a husband and a relative after a woman was allegedly electrocuted to death, a case that also began with a family complaint and moved on the family’s insistence. The Bahawalpur case follows the same pattern: the family pushed for a complaint after facing pressure not to report it.
The law treats the girl as a child, and the case will be investigated as a sexual offence against a minor. The suspect’s name has not been made public by the police, and the victim has not been named.
What happens next
The police have not said when the suspect will be arrested. The parents want the chief minister to direct the police to act at once. The investigation will now decide whether the evidence supports a charge and a trial.
Lahore courts deal with family and criminal cases every day, and the pace of a case often depends on how quickly the police complete their investigation and file a challan. For the family in Bahawalpur, the wait is for the arrest they have asked the chief minister to order.
Frequently asked questions
Who has been booked in the Bahawalpur case?
The principal of a private college in mauza Khanpur Mirchan, Bahawalpur. The Musafirkhana police booked him on the complaint of the father of a 17-year-old first-year student.
What does the complaint say?
The father says his daughter was waiting at the college gate to leave for home on November 3 when the principal took her into his office and allegedly raped her. She told her father about the assault when she returned home.
Has anyone been arrested?
No. Police said no arrest had been made so far and the case was under investigation.
What have the parents asked for?
The victim’s parents have appealed to the Punjab chief minister to direct the police to take immediate action and arrest the suspect.
How common are such cases in Punjab?
Police registered 17,348 cases of sexual offences against children across Pakistan in 2025, according to the National Commission on the Rights of Child, and nearly 74 per cent of them were in Punjab.
