MULTAN, Oct 2: The crime rate has increased after the posting of supervisory police officers (SPO) in urban police stations contrary to the expectation of top police hierarchy.

In Multan district, 2,465 cases were registered in July and August. Whereas 1,879 cases were registered in May and June - two months before their posting.

Assistant or deputy superintendents of police were posted in June as SPOs in 106 urban police stations of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan and Gujranwala. The SPOs were posted to ensure better public dealing, to improve police performance and to guide the station house officers (SHO).

As an incentive, the SPOs are being paid Rs20,000, a special allowance equal to one basic salary and 20 days’ daily allowance per month.

Nineteen SPOs have been appointed in urban police stations of the district. They are; Ghulam Muhammad in Saddar police station, Naeemul Hasan Khan in Chehlyak, Ghulam Abbas Khera in Gulgasht, Bashir Gujjar in Alpa, Hasan Raza in Cantonment, Atiq Butt in Jalilabad, Barkat Gujjar in Bohar Gate, Abdul Sattar in Qutabpur, Mehr Mumtaz in Muzaffarabad, Maqbool Jatt in Mumtazabad, Karamatullah Malik in Haram Gate, Hashim Bokhari in Kup, Ishfaq Burki in Delhi Gate, Mrs Tallat Habib in Kotwali, Liaquat Ali in Lohari Gate, Sharif Zafar in Daulat Gate, Fateh Mohammad in New Multan and Muhammad Nawaz in Seetal Mari.

District Police Officer Munir Ahmad Chishti said the appointment of SPOs was a part of the government plan to improve police behavior. “the SPOs are responsible to ensure resolution of complainants’ problems.”

Special Task Force of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan coordinator Advocate Rashid Rehman, on the other hand, termed appointments of SPOs unnecessary and burden on national exchequer.

He said if the government wanted to ensure better public dealing and to improve police performance, it should make Public Safety Commission active.

He said there was a significant increase in street crime - snatching of mobile phones and purses. Registration of an FIR was the fundamental right of every citizen but police always used delaying tactics, he added.

He said police were not a people-friendly force and their irresponsible attitude was creating problems for the people. Increase in crime rate was the result of police’s irresponsible behavior, he continued.

Multan city union council No 5 naib nazim Salimullah Khan said the appointment of SPOs could not bring any change to traditional police system.

He said people believed that the police misused authority. They misbehaved with the people. Their prime duty was to serve the public. But the increase in strength of police did not help decrease the crime rate.

‘On the one hand, the government was allocating huge sums for police reforms, while on the other hand the behavior of police had become aggressive towards the public.’