IN Punjab, an encounter with the law can quickly turn deadly. Encouraged by a culture of ‘shoot first, ask questions later’, the province’s law enforcement agencies, particularly its Crime Control Department, have been racking up an alarming tally of extrajudicial killings. The CCD killed 924 suspects during dubious ‘encounters’ over eight months in 2025, according to an HRCP fact-finding report, which was released earlier this year. Its killing spree has continued apace, with the department’s ‘achievements’ hailed by the provincial leadership as an example of the state ‘protecting citizens’ life, property and honour’. A report by the FIA, recently submitted to the Lahore High Court, has now shed light on how malignant the police brutality problem has become in that province. Punjab apparently takes the lead in custodial torture and deaths as well, with the FIA informing the high court that more than 70pc of all inquiries registered under the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention and Punishment) Act of 2022 have been initiated against authorities in Punjab. For context, the FIA has launched more than five times as many inquiries in Punjab as it has in KP, which has the second-worst record of custodial torture and deaths in the country.

The impunity with which Punjab’s law enforcers seem to be operating is a chilling example of how quickly the state turns to highhandedness when law and justice take a back seat. Sadly, Pakistan’s judiciary appears to have done little but watch from the sidelines as one of the most fundamental tenets of justice — the innocence of every citizen until their guilt is proven — has been brazenly violated. There seem to have been zero consequences for the perpetrators so far. Since most victims of this brand of ‘justice’ have been individuals from less fortunate backgrounds, there has also been very little hue and cry, considering the sheer scale of abuses taking place. But it is not guaranteed that the victims will always be those from the margins of society. History shows that a state that kills with impunity will not confine that impunity to one class for too long. Civil society leaders should not wait for someone who looks and talks like them to be killed before they push back against state excesses. Punjab’s law enforcement agencies must be compelled to operate within the bounds of the law. There is absolutely no excuse for bloodletting on this scale.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2026