LAHORE: The Gulberg police busted a racket of traffic wardens posted at the Liberty Khidmat Markaz Traffic Centre and the tout mafia (unauthorised agents) who were issuing driving licences to the citizens for Rs25,000 each.

Police arrested three traffic wardens, including in-charge of the centre, red-handed, seized an amount that they had obtained through their agents for passing the driving test, by-passing the laid down procedures. The culprits were identified as Mubeen, Farooq and Imran Mubeen. A case was registered against them.

The action was initiated by Gulberg Circle ASP (Operations) Rajinder Mahigwar who had deployed a source to detect the network.

The ASP was informed that the private agents who were lurking in and outside the Khidmat Markaz, offering services to the citizens waiting for their turn for the driving test.

Wardens were allegedly taking Rs25,000 for each licence

Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) DIG Athar Waheed said the in-charge of the centre was recently appointed following his clean service record and expressed his displeasure and disappointment at his involvement in corruption.

Sharing details, he added, the police had first nabbed the private agents. The police ‘source’ had paid Rs10,000 to the private agent who had claimed that the traffic in-charge and other wardens posted in the centre would bypass the procedures for the driving test.

The DIG said the agent then entered the centre, met a traffic officer and gave him the money as a token/advance payment, giving an assurance that he (traffic warden) would get the rest of the amount Rs15,000 after completing the process. He said the police team, which was alert outside the centre, raided and arrested the three traffic wardens, including the in-charge of the centre red-handed. The team recovered from them the ‘marked currency notes’ the source had paid them through the private agents.

Similarly, the police took into custody the five ‘touts’ from the compound of the Traffic Centre, identified as Shamoon, a resident of Saddar Bazaar, Zeeshan Farrukh of Shahdara, Hammad Nasir of China Scheme, Abdullah from Toba Tek Singh, and Syed Ali, a resident of Kot Lakhpat. They also recovered from them the currency notes and shifted them to the police station for action.

The CTO said the traffic police had introduced several initiatives to make the system flawless in order to ensure that the citizens get the driving licencing system completely on merit. For the purpose, 80 police officials of all the driving test centres of the city had been transferred and replaced with the new ones, keeping in view their good service record.

“As per the laid down policy, the traffic officers at these centres were replaced every year to make the facilities corruption-free,” Mr Waheed claimed. He lamented that the illegal practices detected at the main driving centre of the city had resulted in a grave injustice to those citizens who were respecting the laws.

To a question, he claimed it was not a long-running corruption scandal as three arrested officers were posted only a few weeks back.

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2025