MARCH 3, 2009 was a tragic day for cricket and the families of the local personnel who lost their lives when the Sri Lankan team bus came under a deadly commando-style attack in Lahore. At least seven people were killed, almost all of them policemen, while several others were injured, including members of the visiting team. Two years on, there has been little headway in investigations into that heinous crime which further tarnished the image of a country that was being shunned anyway by every major cricketing nation save Sri Lanka. Granted it is no mean task to apprehend highly trained terrorists, especially in Pakistan where investigations tend to be shoddy and where sanctuaries abound for those bent on destruction. Accounting for the major security lapse that contributed to the attack is another matter, however.

As the Senate's standing committee on sports pointed out the other day, the Punjab government is yet to implement the recommendations of a judicial commission which found several police officers guilty of dereliction of duty on that fateful day two years ago. Instead, it seems the Punjab government is content with laying all the blame at the door of one man, the then inspector general of police. For many this does not mesh with what transpired and, in short, will simply not do. Bringing the accused officers to book may not lure foreign teams to Pakistan any time soon. But it could send a signal that the authorities here are taking the Lahore attack seriously and will not allow any repeat incident, be it in Punjab or anywhere else in the country. Sweeping the matter under the carpet is not an option here for another reason as well: some small measure of justice for the families and friends of the slain. The Punjab government must act, and act now.