New Delhi: Pakistani politics has been hit by a bombshell with the arrest of Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar’s grandson for alleged abduction and rape of two foreign nationals. Pakistanis are livid over the state of affairs under Asim Munir, with many social media users saying this is what they get in a military-ruled state.
The allegations against Raza Dar occupied much of Pakistani social media space on Friday, with what is believed to be a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) circulating on various platforms. A barrage of critiques, complaints, and conspiracy theories followed.
According to the FIR, five individuals, including Raza Dar, have been booked in connection with the alleged offences. However, it also named a ‘boss’ who allegedly kidnapped the foreign nationals.
Dutch national Stephanie Adriana Mau-Arun and Venezuelan Astrid Robinson Bracho filed a case alleging they were kidnapped, gang-raped, and extorted. They claimed they met Raza in Singapore in October 2025. He invited them to Pakistan, arranged visas, and they were abducted on 29 June in Lahore by Raza, his “boss” and three others, reports stated.
Police allege that the women were lured to Lahore under false pretences before being abducted. Investigators said the alleged abduction had taken place on 29 June, BBC Urdu reported.
According to Lahore police, the case came to light after the father of one of the women contacted authorities, reporting that the alleged kidnappers had demanded a ransom of $1.5 million. During the proceedings, investigators told the court that Raza had been named in the original FIR, while the remaining three suspects were implicated through supplementary statements recorded during the investigation.
To make matters worse, a case was registered against the SHO who filed the case. The irony was not lost on many.
“Thank goodness only a case has been filed. Otherwise, while cleaning the pistol, a bullet could have hit the head. A sudden heart attack could have struck. Someone could have been killed during a robbery. A traffic accident could have happened too,” Pakistani journalist Fawad Azhar wrote on X.
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Who is the ‘boss’?
Pakistanis have bigger concerns. They want to know who the “boss” mentioned in the FIR is.
“Must be someone from the Pakistan Army. Nothing of this sort usually happens in Pakistan without Pakistan Army officers’ involvement,” Pakistani X user Sophia wrote. Another agreed, saying that “everyone knows the ‘boss’ in Pakistan is the military Establishment & their blackmailers until proven otherwise.”
As everyone played Sherlock online, one Pakistani investigative journalist claimed that the revelation of the boss’ identity will “shock” many, although he did not reveal the name.
Syed Zeeshan Aziz, a journalist with Pakistan’s Daily Urdu Point, wrote on X, “In the Reza Dar case, everyone’s focus is solely on the accused ‘Reza Dar,’ but what if there’s a name in the case—a BOSS even more powerful than Reza Dar—who’s never caught? Along with that, the word ‘ONLY’ attached to Reza Dar’s name in the case is also noteworthy—has the word ‘ONLY’ ever been used like this anywhere before?”
Another Pakistani journalist, Najam ul Hassan Bajwa, chimed in with the claim that the name might “even lead to a resignation by a big officer”.
Others had larger concerns. Some people online were quick to notice that the FIR was full of typos. Then there was a crypto angle too.
Raza Dar had expected to receive approximately $1.5 million from the two foreign women in crypto, an amount estimated at roughly 450 million Pakistani rupees, the BBC report revealed.
Police rescued the two women and arrested four suspects, including Dar’s grandson, and also sought a 14-day physical remand. The Lahore Cantonment court instead granted investigators a five-day physical remand.
Pakistanis are angry but also aware. Most say nothing will ever happen to the influential people due to military protection. A few called for Raza Dar’s execution in an encounter.
“For PMLN, the easiest way to prove that Reza Dar is not related to Ishaq Dar is to let CCD kill him in a fake encounter, as per the standard punishment in Punjab for poor, not well-connected rapists,” Pakistani X user Faraz wrote.
However, few sane voices jumped in to point out the fallacy of the argument, even in jest.
“The growing calls for CCD to replicate ‘encounters’ in the Raza Dar scandal appear driven by deep public frustration over selective justice and unequal treatment under the law. One can understand the anger at the system’s failures, but it should not translate into endorsement of extrajudicial actions. Rule of law cannot be sacrificed for revenge,”Dawn journalist Baqir Sajjad wrote on X.
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)