The alleged rape of a 20-year-old woman with learning disabilities in a police station in Lahore, Pakistan, has prompted authorities to suspend all 78 police officers and staff at the precinct, in one of the country’s biggest ever disciplinary actions against its police force.

The woman alleges that an assistant sub-inspector apprehended her, took her to Ghaziabad police station and raped her in a room on the second floor. The woman’s family said she disappeared on the street, before returning home in tears and stating that she had been sexually assaulted at the station.

The accused officer has been arrested and is now facing a criminal investigation for rape. All 78 police officials and staff members of Lahore’s Ghaziabad police station were suspended on Tuesday.

Lahore’s deputy inspector general of police (operations), Faisal Kamran, told the Guardian that the officers were suspended because, under police rules, all personnel were responsible for preventing and reporting any wrongdoing within the station and they had failed to do so.

“No officer questioned why the assistant sub-inspector had brought the woman to the station without any female police personnel present,” Kamran said.

“I suspended all 78 police officials, and the gender crime wing is investigating the case, and we will dismiss the culprits, and we will ensure the safety of all police stations in the city,” he added.

The case has sparked outrage in Pakistan, where rights groups have long claimed many women are reluctant to report sexual violence because of stigma and a lack of confidence in law enforcement. Allegations of misconduct by police officers have further eroded public trust, activists say.

“This is an extremely disturbing incident and reflects the longstanding lack of accountability within the police,” said Farzana Bari, a women’s rights activist. “It is a stark example of the abuse of power. Allegations of police misconduct and custodial rape are not new, and we have seen such cases over the years.

“We campaigned relentlessly in the 1990s for women’s police stations because survivors often did not feel safe reporting abuse to male officers. While the police’s record on protecting women remains poor, the fact that this case has been reported offers some hope that justice will be served.”

Convictions for rape remain rare despite legal reforms in recent years. The Sustainable Social Development Organisation said the national conviction rate was about 0.5% in 2024, while official data showed the rate in Punjab, where the incident occurred, was 4% in 2025.

Rights groups attribute the low rates to weak investigations, poor evidence collection, delays in prosecutions and the stigma surrounding sexual violence.

According to police data, there were more than 20,000 crimes against women in Punjab province in the first half of 2026, up from the same period in 2025.

“Unless state institutions are held accountable, such crimes will continue. What is needed is structural reform and stronger oversight to ensure justice for ordinary people,” Bari said.