LAHORE: Police on Saturday claimed to have arrested 69 people involved in exploiting citizens and charging heavy interest from them.

In a press release, Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Bilal Siddique Kamyana said the crackdown against usurers exploiting citizens financially would continue. He said that usury was a serious social evil and those involved in it did not deserve any leniency.

The CCPO directed supervisory officers to ensure prompt action on complaints related to usury and to guarantee that investigations into such cases were conducted strictly on merit.

Mr Kamyana further said that a zero-tolerance policy against the ‘usury mafia’ and their facilitators must be implemented with full force. He added that the objective of the ongoing crackdown against usury was to protect citizens from financial exploitation and to ensure the rule of law.

Meanwhile, a Lahore Police spokesperson said that 69 suspects had been arrested during the recent operation against usurers. He said that 78 cases had been registered against the accused involved in usury at various police stations across the city.

According to the spokesperson, 24 usurers were arrested from Iqbal Town Division, 21 from City Division and 11 from Cantonment Division.

Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2026