LAHORE, Dec 20: Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi on Tuesday severely reprimanded senior police officials for failing to control law and order. He directed them to improve law and order and arrest outlaws within a month or face action.
“I have trusted you but you have not come up to my expectations. I have provided you with everything but you have failed to deliver,” the chief minister reported to have told the police officials at a meeting held at the Civil Secretariat.
Sources said Pervaiz Elahi made it clear that since police officials did not pay heed to his repeated warnings, he had decided to monitor their performance on a monthly basis. Action would be taken against inept DPOs and DIGs would also be held responsible for their (DPOs) failures, he warned. He said inept DPOs from provincial police service would be made OSDs and those from the Police Service of Pakistan would be sent back.
“I am initiating development projects worth billions of rupees and if police fail to maintain law and order, there will be no local or foreign investment,” he was quoted by the sources as saying.
The sources said the chief minister had expressed his dissatisfaction over investigation of cases and performance of SHOs. He also asked the DPOs to hold meetings with their counterparts in districts bordering other provinces so that gun-running could be controlled.
The chief minister asked DIGs and DPOs to stop the practice of sitting in their offices. He asked them to visit areas in their jurisdiction to personally monitor law and order and efforts to improve it. He said he would review the performance of DIGs and DPOs after a month. He said police could not improve their image without delivering the goods. At present, peaceful citizens were reluctant to approach a police station.
“I will be satisfied with police performance only when they will start providing justice to the common man,” he said.
The chief minister said it was the duty of senior officials to make SHOs fight crime. That was why he had decided to proceed against DPOs for the deterioration of law and order in their districts, he said.
“All DPOs would be free to transfer or post SHOs or take disciplinary action against them, and no hurdle would be created for them in this regard,” he said.
The chief minister said he was not ready to accept that SHOs were not aware of the activities of criminals in their areas. The working of police stations had deteriorated to the critical extent and it was becoming impossible for DPOs to improve it.
“Time has come to start improving without any delay,” he said.
He regretted that the much publicized campaigns against cattle lifting were normally sent to the cold storage after some time. Cattle lifting is a major problem in villages and efficiency of police officers would now be measured with the number of cattle lifters arrested and stolen cattle recovered, he said.
The chief minister directed all DPOs to personally visit a place where a robbery was committed and keep in constant touch with the affected family or person. It was also the duty of police to show sympathy with victim.
Law Minister Basharat Raja said the government had taken a serious view of police reluctance to register FIRs. Registration of FIRs in a month under instructions from courts would also be linked to the performance of each police station, he said.
He said during his monthly evaluation meetings the chief minister would also consider reports indicating field visits and inspection of police station by senior police officials.