KARACHI, Sept 13: The new Police Order 2002 has been enforced to improve the police’s image among the people. The police hierarchy often ask people to extend maximum cooperation with them, as they are at their service. Despite their requests, people do not extend their cooperation, and the reason why this happens is being continuously neglected.

Police officials in the field — by following their traditional practices — appear to be continuously defying the directives of their commanding officers. A person who is nabbed by the police and is subjected to torture remains in trauma for many days, and whoever listens to his ordeal — be it neighbours, relatives or acquaintances — fear is created among them against the police, and they start to harbour hatred against policemen.

An example is of Nazimuddin, a youth who wanted to buy a mobile phone set from one Naseer, who took him along. When they reached near the KFC restaurant in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, they were picked up by the police. Naseer was called there by one of his friends, who was in the custody of the anti-car lifting cell.

The police took Naseer and Nazim to Gulshan-i-Iqbal police station on Sept 6, where Nazim was subjected to severe torture. Not only was he tortured, but was threatened that he would be killed in a fake police encounter. He was allowed to inform his family after 24 hours in illegal confinement. Later, on the intervention of a senior police official, Nazim — who was proven to be innocent — was released.

Nazim, who is a graduate and belongs to a reputed family, was taken to a private clinic, where doctors said the patient would take a month to recover from his internal injuries. Some of his arteries were partially damaged, and he felt pain all over his body. Now wouldn’t his neighbours, relatives and acquaintances — after listening to his ordeal — certainly develop hatred against the police? Obviously, after one comes to know about how Nazim tolerated the humiliating behaviour and torture of the police, how can one trust our ‘Pak Police’.

In another incident, the police allegedly released a robber who was caught by a man, despite suffering stab wounds. Two robbers raided the house of Abdur Rehman Qureshi in Jutland Lines Area on June 17. The robbers held Abdur Rehman at gunpoint and looted $500, Rs33,000, a motorcycle (MPS-1915) and other valuables. One of the robbers, who was holding a dagger, stabbed Abdur Rehman. This was witnessed by one Muneer, a friend of Abdur Rehman’s, who was present at the time of the incident.

The victim was taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where he was operated upon. He was conscious, according to the medico-legal report, but the police did not reach the spot to record his statement. The police kept one of the robbers for three days — who was handed over by Abdur Rehman to the police — who released him. The police could not even ascertain the name and address of the robber, who remained in custody for three days.

The complainant, after his recovery, reached the police station to check on the progress of the case, but there was no FIR registered into the incident.

Abdur Rehman, a primary school teacher, gave an application asking the police to convert it into an FIR, but the Brigade police registered FIR 150/2002 on their own presumption, distorting the facts. The incident took place on June 17, and the FIR was registered on July 13. He named Naeem in the FIR, as he had identified one of the robbers. Naeem had obtained pre-arrest bail from court.

The police did not mention in the FIR that the robbers had also taken away the motorcycle of the complainant. The police allegedly demanded Rs5,000 from Abdur Rehman, and after the alleged payment to the police, they handed over the motorcycle (MPS-1915) to Abdur Rehman.

The complainant moved to court against the bail granted to Naeem. The police told the court that they went to the hospital to record the statement of the complainant, but he was unconscious. Thereafter, they forgot to record the statement.

The court observed that, “they (police) should not have forgotten their duty of again going to the hospital to record (the) statement of the injured.”

The court, in its order, cancelled the bail to Naeem, who fled the court premises in front of the police, who could not arrest him.

The robbers have been continuously threatening the complainant of dire consequences if he pursues the case, and the police are apparently reluctant to nab the suspects, probably at the behest of some influential. They have started saying that the complainant was not extending cooperation with the investigating officers. What kind of cooperation does the police need?

It is feared that the investigation into the case would be closed for want of interest and cooperation from the complainant.

In another case, a water-tanker hit an eight-year-old boy in Mochko police limits who died on the spot. The truck driver, arrested by the police, was later released from custody. The father of the deceased ran from pillar to post to register the FIR, and ultimately, he managed to get FIR 08/2001 registered with the Mochko police station after a delay of 23 days. The tanker driver is still at large and no efforts have been made to rearrest him.

Zainul Abideen, aged 8, was hit by a recklessly-driven water tanker (LS-3080) on January 1, 2001. The boy died on the spot. The police picked up the driver, Hidayat Gul, and took him to the police station. However, the police released the driver and did not register an FIR into the case, with ulterior motives and mala fide intentions.

An inquiry was conducted, and three police officials of Mochko police station — Azam Siddiqui (SHO), SI Akram Butt (investigating officer), and ASI Mohammad Ali Khan (duty officer), — were found guilty of non-registration of the case with ulterior motive. They were demoted, suspended and finally dismissed from service.

However, sub-inspector Azam Siddiqui was reinstated later at the behest of a DIG ranking officer, who is a distant relative of Azam Siddiqui’s. Why has Azam been reinstated? Is the intensity of his criminal negligence lessened by being a relative of a DIG?

Why has the killer driver not been arrested, despite the lapse of more than one year and eight months? The victim’s father, Mohammad Hasan, who is a clerk in the police department, has still been running from pillar to post to seek justice.

The people do not care about the old or new systems. They just want relief and quick redressal of their grievances. They want the police to do justice to their profession and be polite to citizens. People do not want police to create problems for them.

People are ready to cooperate with the police, but the police have to prove themselves first. They have to prove that they are the servants of the people, not their rulers.