Punjab Police (Pakistan)

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Punjab Police
پنجاب پولیس
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Flag of Punjab Police
Flag of Punjab Police
AbbreviationPP
MottoTo Serve and Protect Our Punjab
Always Stand With People
Agency overview
Formed22 March 1861[1]
Employees350,000
Annual budgetClassified
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionPunjab, Pakistan
Map of Punjab Police's jurisdiction
Size205,344 square kilometres (79,284 sq mi)
Population128,000,000
Legal jurisdictionPunjab
Governing bodyGovernment of Punjab
Constituting instrument
  • Police Rules & Police Order 2002
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersCentral Police Office, Lahore
Agency executive
Parent agencyPolice Service of Pakistan
Website
punjabpolice.gov.pk

The Punjab Police (Punjabi, Urdu: پنجاب پولیس) is a law enforcement agency of Punjab, Pakistan. Under the command of its Inspector General (IG), it administers all criminal cases under the Police Acts of 1861 and 2002. The force was introduced in its modern form under British rule, and a colonial influence continues. On 23 January 2023, Dr. Usman Anwar was appointed as the Inspector General of Punjab Police.

History[edit]

Mughal Empire[edit]

Under the Mughal Empire, policing was organized on the basis of land tenure. Zamindars were responsible for apprehending disturbers of the public peace and performing other policing duties. At the village level, these functions were performed by the village headman. In large towns, functionaries known as kotwals combined law enforcement, municipal administration and revenue collection. Watchmen were on patrol and violent, organized crime was usually handled by the military.

British Raj[edit]

The modern system of policing was introduced during British rule. The British administration relieved the zamindars of responsibility for police service, and introduced magistrates with daroghas and other subordinate officers. The Punjab Police was organized in two branches: the Military Preventive Police and the Civil Detective Police. This arrangement proved unsatisfactory, however, and the government of British India urged the government of Punjab to investigate the province's system of policing in 1860. Due to the importance of the issue, the central government appointed a commission to investigate policing in British India. The Calcutta Police Commission of 1860 recommended abolition of the police's military arm, the appointment of an Inspector General of Police in the province and the supervision of police in a district by a District Superintendent. The commission recommended that only the district magistrate should conduct law-enforcement functions. Based on the commission's recommendations, the government of India submitted a bill which was enacted as Act V of 1861; the Police Act of 1861 was adopted. The organizational structure of the act still survives.

The Punjab Police Rules of 1933 documented the police practices of the time, and introduced measures for improving administration and operational effectiveness. The rules indicate that the Punjab Police was a professional police organization by 1934, had considerable knowledge of the province's crime and criminals, and developed effective procedures and practices for dealing with various kinds of criminal activity. The force's administrative and disciplinary functions were also described. They have been the model for similar rules in other provinces of Pakistan, and are still in force.

After independence[edit]

Service colour Dark blue and red
  
Uniform colour Olive green
 

The Punjab Police played a significant role in handling the refugee crisis of 1947–48. It continued as a separate organization until 1955, when it was merged with the police of other provinces to create the West Pakistan Police. The West Pakistan Deputy Inspector General was Inayat Ali Shah. The East and West Pakistan DIGs reported to an IG who, during the 1950s, was Qurban Ali Khan. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to review and reform police organization and performance during the 1950s and 1960s. The Pakistan police's legal framework underwent a major change as a consequence of the Devolution of Power Plan, which was implemented between 2001 and 2006. The plan devolved much provincial-governmental authority and functions to the districts, and introduced public accountability of the police.

A system of district governments was introduced with the Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2001. As a part of the plan, the Police Order replaced the Police Act 1861 in 2002 and brought sweeping changes to the police. The new law introduced public accountability in the form of Public Safety Commissions at the district, provincial and national level. The Police Order 2002 also provided for an independent Police Complaints Authority, increased autonomy of the Inspector General of Police and separated investigation from other police functions. The Punjab Police are engaged in counterterrorism operations in the province.[2]

Organization[edit]

Five uniformed officers
Punjab Police in uniform (2017–2023)

The Punjab Police is constituted by the Police Order 2002 and operates under the Police Rules of 1934. The Central Police Office (CPO) in Lahore which has a number of branches, including the Legal Affairs Division (Legal Branch), Finance and Welfare, Operations, Training, and Research and Development. The branches report to the Inspector General of Police through their Additional Inspectors General of Police. The Regional Police Officers report to the Inspector General of Police, and are not part of the Punjab CPO. The Inspector General of Police is the ex officio secretary of the government of Punjab. The Punjab Police is staffed by its officers and those of the Police Service of Pakistan.

Units:

Main formations:

  • Central Police Office, Punjab
  • Police Regions
  • Investigation Branch
  • Special Branch
  • Telecommunication Branch
  • Operations Branch

Equipment[edit]

Vehicles[edit]

Officers are allotted cars by rank. Bulletproof vehicles are provided to officers at sensitive posts.

Ranks and Insignia[edit]

Rank group General/flag officers Senior officers Junior officers
Punjab Police
Insignia Of Inspector General of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Additional Inspector General of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Deputy Inspector General of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Deputy Inspector General of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Senior Superintendent of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Superintendent of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Superintendent of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Deputy Superintendent of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Assistant Superintendent of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Assistant Superintendent of Punjab Police
Inspector General of Police

(IGP)

Additional Inspector General of Police

(Add-IG)

Deputy Inspector General of Police

(DIG)

Assistant Inspector General of Police / Senior Superintendent of Police

(AIG/SSP)

Superintendent of Police

(SP With 8 Year Service)

Superintendent of Police

(SP)

Deputy Superintendent of Police

(DSP)

Assistant Superintendent of Police (Probationary Rank: 2 years of service) Assistant Superintendent of Police (Probationary Rank: 1 year of service)
Rank group Junior commissioned officers Non commissioned officer Enlisted
Punjab Police
Insignia Of Inspector of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Sub Inspector of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Assistant Sub Inspector of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Head Constable of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Naik of Punjab Police
Insignia Of Naik of Punjab Police
No insignia
Inspectorانسپکٹر Sub Inspectorسب انسپکٹر Assistant Sub Inspectorاسسٹنٹ سب انسپکٹر Head Constable

ہیڈ کانسٹیبل

Police Naik

پولیس نائک

Constable

سپاہی

Controversies[edit]

The Anti-Corruption Establishment Punjab called Punjab Police the most corrupt public department in the province in a 2010 report.[3] Members of the force have been involved in a number of criminal activities. In November 2017, a man was killed in a setup in Faisalabad. Initially identified as a robber, he was an unarmed civilian who had had an affair with a relative of the Gujranwala District deputy superintendent of police and left the country. During a visit to Pakistan, plainclothes police officer shot and killed him.[4] Sexual assault, harassment, and mistreatment of women have also occurred. Express News reported on 20 November 2017 that two Punjab Police officers tore a woman's clothes, made a video, tried to blackmail her and shared the video on social media. Both officers were fired, but it is unknown if they faced criminal charges.[5] Faisalabad police gang-raped the wife of a fellow police officer.[6]

In November 2017, a video on social media depicted Punjab Police officers torturing an elderly couple; the entire police station was suspended.[7] A seven-year-old child was arrested for kidnapping by Punjab Police in 2015.[8] A 12-year-old was arrested by Punjab Police in Bahawalpur District after they failed to arrest his father, a farmer named in an FIR for disputing the price of sugar cane at a sugar mill. The boy brought his schoolbooks to jail.[9]

Uniform change[edit]

Pakistan Punjab Police previous uniform shirt

In 2017, the Punjab Police changed its standard uniform constituting black shirts and khaki pants, which was designed by GM Chowdri & Sons(government contractors since 1916) under the order of Khan Qurban Ali Khan, to all olive-green.[10][11] The change had a mixed reaction; the government said that it had consulted professional designers, but the new uniform has been criticized as dull and less attractive. Media reports have circulated that the Punjab Police will revive their previous uniform again.[12]

Leadership
# Name From To
1 Khan Qurban Ali Khan August 1947 August 1952
2 Mian Anwar Ali August 1952 October 1952
3 Khan Qurban Ali Khan October 1952 February 1953
4 Mian Anwar Ali February 1953 June 1953
5 S. N. Alam June 1953 May 1955
6 Mian Anwar Ali May 1955 May 1956
7 A. B. Awan May 1956 May 1958
8 Muhammad Sharif Khan May 1958 August 1962
9 S. N. Alam August 1962 July 1963
10 S. D. Qureshi July 1963 July 1968
11 Mian Bashir Ahmad July 1968 April 1970
12 Muhammad Anwar Afridi April 1970 October 1972
13 Sahibzada Raoof Ali October 1972 August 1974
14 Rao Abdur Rasheed August 1974 April 1976
15 Atta Hussain April 1976 March 1977
16 Fazal-e-Haq March 1977 July 1977
17 M. A. R. Arif July 1977 September 1977
18 Khawaja Masrur Hussain September 1977 February 1978
19 Habib Ur Rehman Khan February 1978 July 1979
20 Muhammad Azam Qazi July 1979 November 1980
21 Obaid-Ur-Rehman Khan November 1980 June 1981
22 Laeeq Ahmad Khan June 1981 September 1985
23 Hafiz S. D. Jamy September 1985 18 August 1987
24 Nisar Ahmad Cheema 18 August 1987 6 March 1989
25 Manzoor Ahmad 8 March 1989 20 June 1991
26 Sardar Muhammad Chaudhry 21 June 1991 30 May 1993
27 G. Asghar Malik 1 June 1993 21 July 1993
28 Muhammad Abbas Khan 26 July 1993 8 August 1996
29 Zulfiqar Ali Qureshi 8 August 1996 26 November 1996
30 Muhammad Amin 27 November 1996 17 March 1997
31 Jehan Zaib Burki 18 March 1997 26 October 1999
32 Muhammad Rafique Haider 26 October 1999 12 June 2000
33 Malik Asif Hayat 12 June 2000 11 December 2002
34 Syed Masud Shah 12 December 2002 31 March 2004
35 Saadat Ullah Khan 1 April 2004 9 June 2005
36 Zia-ul-Hassan Khan 10 June 2005 29 December 2006
37 Ahmad Nasim 29 December 2006 27 February 2008
38 Azhar Hassan Nadeem 29 February 2008 16 April 2008
39 Shaukat Javed 17 April 2008 25 February 2009
40 Kh. Khalid Farooq 25 February 2009 1 April 2009
41 Shaukat Javed 1 April 2009 22 April 2009
42 Tariq Saleem 27 April 2009 31 December 2010
43 Javed Iqbal 7 January 2011 17 February 2012
44 Haji Mohammad Habib ur Rehman 17 February 2012 1 January 2013
45 Aftab Sultan 1 April 2013 25 May 2013
46 Khan Baig 25 May 2013 15 June 2014
47 Mushtaq Ahmad Sukhera 17 June 2014 10 April 2017
48 Muhammad Usman 10 April 2017 25 July 2017
49 Arif Nawaz Khan 25 July 2017 13 June 2018
50 Kaleem Imam 13 June 2018 11 September 2018
51 Muhammad Tahir 11 September 2018 15 October 2018
52 Amjad Javed Saleemi 15 October 2018 17 April 2019
53 Arif Nawaz Khan 17 April 2019 28 November 2019
54 Shoaib Dastgir 28 November 2019 9 September 2020
55 Inam Ghani 9 September 2020 8 September 2021
56 Rao Sardar Ali Khan 8 September 2021 23 July 2022
57 Faisal Shahkar 23 July 2022 21 December 2022
58 Aamir Zulfiqar Khan 22 December 2022 23 January 2023
59 Dr Usman Anwar 23 January 2023 Present

Notable officers[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/print_section[dead link]
  2. ^ "Article". Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2008.
  3. ^ "'Punjab Police most corrupt public dept in the province' - The Express Tribune". 26 June 2010.
  4. ^ "فیصل آباد مقابلہ؛ مقتول کو ڈی ایس پی کی بھتیجی سے شادی کی سزا ملی، ورثا - ایکسپریس اردو". 8 November 2017.
  5. ^ "لاہور میں پولیس اہلکاروں کا خاتون پر تشدد، وڈیو بھی بنائی - ایکسپریس اردو". 20 November 2017.
  6. ^ "فیصل آباد کے تھانے میں اہلکاروں کی پولیس افسر کی بیوی سے مبینہ زیادتی - ایکسپریس اردو". 18 November 2017.
  7. ^ "Punjab police barbarity with elderly couple - Samaa TV". www.samaa.tv.
  8. ^ "Punjab police book 7-year-old child in kidnapping case". 24 March 2015.
  9. ^ "بہاولپور: باپ کی عدم گرفتاری پر 12 سالہ بچہ تھانے میں بند".
  10. ^ "Punjab police consulted fashion school for new uniforms". www.geo.tv.
  11. ^ "Punjab police dons new uniform in Lahore". www.geo.tv.
  12. ^ https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/12-Dec-2018/punjab-police-to-get-old-uniform-back-next-year

External links[edit]