Update · 27 Oct 2026, 8:35 PM PKT: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said the accused's family offered the woman Rs15 million to Rs20 million to withdraw her allegations and alleged the bail judge was bribed. The accused's lawyer said the high court returned the case record on Monday and the file would be reassigned to another judge.
Diana released a video statement declaring AT* innocent, saying he had neither assaulted her nor taken her phone, and appealed for the case against him to be closed. Diana also said she had earlier given statements under pressure. DIG Syed Zeeshan Raza said police would continue investigating on merit.
A sessions court in Lahore declined to hear the interim bail plea of Ahmed Tanveer, the main accused in an alleged rape case involving Diana, an Azerbaijani woman. Additional Sessions Judge Riffaqat Ali Gondal recused himself from the matter, stating that a reference had already been sent to the Lahore High Court.
Tanveer’s counsel, Safdar Shaheen Pirzada, appeared before the court, but the hearing could not proceed. The lawyer later filed an application seeking exemption from his client’s personal appearance, arguing that the accused could not attend court after his interim bail expired, and asked the court to grant it.
Police allege accused skipped the investigation
Police said an earlier court had extended Tanveer’s interim bail by 10 days despite his failure to join the investigation. They said he obtained protective bail from the Peshawar High Court on October 9, which barred police from arresting him, and later secured interim bail from a Lahore sessions court on October 15.
Also read: Police arrest Ahmed Tanveer despite interim bail in Diana case
The court had directed him to join the investigation between October 15 and October 23, but sources said he did not do so during that period. Police told the court they had submitted evidence supporting their arrest request, including requests to recover a mobile phone and a weapon, and also sought cancellation of his bail.
