100-day reform agenda: 'Transfers, suspension of cops remained PTI government's top priority'

Politically motivated transfers and postings as well as suspension of services of many senior police officers remained the top priority of incumbent Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) government in the Punjab police during its 100-day reform agenda, negating all its pre-poll promises of granting autonomy to law enforcers.
Before coming into power, Prime Minister Imran Khan had vowed to grant autonomy to the police across the country, especially the Punjab police, which he believes, was being used for vested interests and political victimisation by the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) for its opponents.
In August, the first incident of political interference under the present government surfaced when District Police Officer (DPO) Pakpattan Rizwan Gondal was transferred in the middle of the night on the orders generated from the office of Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar.
The DPO was transferred and made OSD for not visiting the "Dera" of Khawar Fareed Maneka and tendering an apology on behalf of his subordinate police officials who had stopped the latter's car and allegedly misbehaved with his family when they were on their way to Darbar (shrine).
According to reports and sources, although the case of Rizwan Gondal has been sent to the Establishment Division, but he is still waiting for his new assignment.
Meanwhile, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Saqib Nisar took notice of the abrupt transfer of the DPO and appointed National Counterterrorism Authority (Nacta) Chief Maher Khaliq Dad Lak for a thorough investigation into the matter.
The Nacta Chief in his findings maintained that orders for the transfer of Rizwan Gondal in the middle of the night came from CM Buzdar's office. After examining the evidence, the Nacta chief asserted that it could be "safely concluded that the orders of the transferring Ex-DPO Pakpattan at an odd time on 27-08-2018 flowed from CM Office and the ex-IG of Punjab only acted as a "rubber stamp".
In another episode of embarrassment, the PTI-led federal government locked horns with former Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Muhammad Tahir after he refused to suspend the services of all police officers who were nominated in the infamous Model Town killing case. However, Tahir had transferred some cops to settle the matter but that was not enough for the government.
Subsequently, the annoyed government issued transfer order of IG Tahir but the Election Commission of Pakistan immediately suspended the notification due to the scheduled by-polls in Punjab. However, a day after the elections, Tahir was replaced with Amjad Javed Saleemi, the incumbent IG Punjab.
Federal Information Minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain had told the media that the Punjab police chief had been replaced because of his "failure to follow directives of the provincial authorities". "The IG was not implementing the directives. We have sent a message to the bureaucracy that the PTI government means business," he added.
When reports of expected transfer of Tahir circulated on social media, the much-hailed head of police reforms commission and a favourite with Prime Minister Imran Khan resigned from his post. Till date, the government could not convince Nasir to rejoin his post.
Almost two weeks after assuming charge of this post, Amjad Javed Saleemi proved himself a "trustworthy officer" by suspending at least five senior cops on special duty (OSDs) for being involved in the Model Town killings case.
After a meeting with Imran Khan in Islamabad, the IGP had ordered to make SSP Investigation Gujranwala Tariq Aziz, SP Kasur Abdul Raheem Sherazi, SP Saddar Faisalabad Aftab Phularwan, SP in Farooqabad Police Training School Imran Karamat Bukhari and SSP Maroof Safdar Wahla OSDs.
In the meeting, the premier had strictly directed the IG to follow the "orders". Imran before coming into power had assured Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Chief Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri of giving "justice" to the victims of Model Town killing incident.
Recently, the Ghalib Market Police after succumbing to political pressure arrested the three constables who were allegedly kidnapped and tortured by the son of Punjab Housing Minister Mian Mahmood-ur-Rasheed and his fellows for harassing his friends who were found in his car along with a girl in October.
Sources said due to the direct involvement of Mian Hassan, the son of Mahmood-ur-Rasheed, police investigators deliberately registered a "weak case" against the suspects who were nominated in the FIR as "unidentified persons".
During the investigation, the police claimed that they recovered a number of video footages from the cellphones of the constables in which they are blackmailing many couples. They added that many boys and girls were said to be students of various educational institutions and children of well-off families.