From fake encounters to allegations of rape of two children by a cop, the image of Pakistan’s police has been tarnished in recent times due to their involvement in criminal activities. With protectors turning predators, people’s faith in the custodians of law has nosedived.
The cases of fake encounters have sullied the image of the police.
While real criminals roam with impunity, innocents are killed or injured when cops stage such fake encounters to earn the appreciation of their political and other bosses.
The recent killing of a doctor while he was in police custody in Sindh after he was accused of blasphemy left the nation shocked. Accused of sharing blasphemous posts on social media, the doctor- Shah Nawaz Kunbhar -was shot dead during an alleged gun battle with the police on September 19 in the Mirpurkhas area of Sindh province.
Last week, the Pakistani government even admitted that Shah Nawaz Kunbhar was killed in a “managed encounter” by Mirpurkhas police.
Reflecting the traumatic state of Pakistani society, these policemen, who allegedly killed the doctor, were branded as heroes by a section of people.
It would have passed like any other fake encounter incident if not for the civil society to raise their voice against the crime and tear off the mask worn by the “protectors”.
In most of the cases, the victims remain unidentified and the police malpractices are shattering the lives of many individuals in the country that is going through political and economic turmoil.
In its Editorial, Dawn News, a leading Pakistani daily, highlighted the agonising picture of police brutality where it quoted the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan report and said: “There were nearly 3,300 encounters reported in Sindh alone in 2023. The Sindh Police say 289 suspects were killed in these operations. Figures from other provinces are far lower, but this may be a case of possible underreporting.”
In another shocking tale of police atrocity, the country witnessed civil society protests after a cop allegedly raped two children in Islamabad.
Pakistani police have still not shown any real intent in arresting the suspects.
Highlighting the issue, The Express Tribune wrote in its Editorial, “At the bare minimum, an SHO being unaware of children being raped in his police station is either incompetent or in on it. Either way, he does not deserve to skate by unscathed.”
“Meanwhile, senior cops, including the sub-divisional police officers for regions covering the two police stations, also appear to have suffered no consequences for the incompetence of their subordinates,” the editorial said.
This incident shows how police are violating law and order in the country.
The news-editorial demanded action against the culprits: “This crime can carry the death penalty. Almost anyone who helps cover up death penalty crimes can be prosecuted for conspiracy.”
Higher authorities should take harsher action and take strict action against the culprits if faith in the police system is to be restored.
The 2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices by the US State Department noted on Pakistan: Media and civil society organizations reported cases of individuals dying in police custody allegedly due to torture.”
“On January 30, Sarfraz, a man age 50, died in police custody in Sahiwal District of Punjab. His family alleged that Sarfraz was tortured to death, but police claimed he died of cardiac arrest. On August 14, a man was allegedly killed in Punjab Highway Patrol custody in Faisalabad District. The Punjab Highway Patrol refuted the relatives’ allegations of torture leading to his death in custody,” the report said of the incidents last year.
“There were reports police personnel employed cruel and degrading treatment and punishment. Police abuse was often underreported. Impunity was a significant problem in the security forces due to politicization, corruption, and ineffective mechanisms to report and investigate abuses. On September 25, the Punjab government suspended five constables in Mandi Bahauddin, Punjab, on charges of bribery, illegal detention, and torture of a citizen,” it said.
On September 12 last year, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) reported 27 persons died in police custody due to torture from January to June in 2023. The HRCP expressed concern regarding the use of torture by civilian and military agencies and the absence of a legal framework to prosecute police brutality effectively.
The HRCP reported frequent allegations of custodial killings and torture in detention centres, police lockups, and prisons and noted most instances of torture remained invisible. The HRCP stated that torture was not only underreported but was also difficult to prove in medical reports.
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