LET US RAISE VOICE AGAINST MASSIVE POWERS TO HUMAN RIGHTS BLIND POLICE

Shafqat Munir

Police highhandedness is a serious issue in Pakistan. Police has been behaving as an anti people force and society must think about it. Unless police is rebuilt (not reformed in the name of reforms as has been done) on scientific lines with educated staff, we cannot stop police led crimes against innocent people. I wrote columns and editorials on the subject but nobody took notice of all what we say or write.

Now citizens have to launch a campaign on restructuring of police force which now serves the interests of a few hundreds elite in the country; and even innocent people are sentenced by our courts on the basis of distorted police reporting of cases. Rich cannot be sentenced if they bribe the police unless the Supreme Court takes notice as it did in case of Shahzeb murder. Poor are sentenced even for the crimes they did not commit as our police is famous for fabricating the cases against have-nots.

There is a need to seriously look into the powers given to the police staff, most of them are illiterate or half educated and are politically appointed. Unless police powers are reviewed and given under strict checks and balance, we would continue to hear fake police encounters in which innocent people are killed extra judicially and the dark justice is delivered in many of the police distorted FIRs in favours of the criminals who pay hefty amounts to them.Let us all think seriously if we call ourselves the human rights defenders. Perhaps, political elite do not feel any need to restructure police as they use them for their political interests.

Lately, land mafia is also in the run to benefit from the services of the police to push people to surrender their belonging to the mafia. Police no more is a law enforcing agency rather it is a channel for rich criminals to buy justice in connivance with police officials. Torture is very common and there is no checks and balance on police functioning as they treat human beings worst than animals.