The Punjab Police (

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
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law and order In modern politics, law and order is the approach focusing on harsher enforcement and penalties as ways to reduce crime. Penalties for perpetrators of disorder may include longer terms of imprisonment, mandatory sentencing, three-strikes laws ...

agency responsible for law enforcement in the province of Punjab. It works under the command of Inspector General (IG) Punjab Police. It controls all criminal cases by taking action under the Police Act of 1861 and 2002 against criminals in the province of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprisin ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

. The force was introduced in its modern form during

British Rule The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

and continues to suffer from colonial influence to the current date. It is perceived by some as a public-frightening rather than a public-friendly organization, which continues to promote a sense of fear rather than security and wellbeing among the population. As of 22 December 2022, Muhammad Aamir Zulfiqar Khan PSP has been appointed the new Inspector General of the Police Punjab.

History

Mughal Era

The system of policing in Mughal Era was organized on the basis of land tenure.

Zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...

s were responsible for apprehending disturbers of the public peace and performing other policing duties. At the level of the village these functions were performed by the village headmen. In large towns administration of the police was entrusted to, functionaries called Kotwals discharged the combined duties of law enforcement, municipal administration and revenue collection. Patrol officers in the shape of village watchmen in villages and peons, horse patrolmen and such other like men in the towns were present. Violent organized crime was usually dealt with by the military.

British Era

The modern system of policing was introduced during

. The British administration relieved the Zamindars of their responsibility for police service and introduced magistrates with

Daroghas Darogas (also spelled darogha or daroghah) were police officials in the Mughal Empire and the British Raj. In the Mughal Empire, a daroga was superintendent of the "slaves" of a Mughal monarch. Duties performed by daroga The darogas served in the ...

and other subordinate officers for Police purposes. The Punjab Police was also organized on the pattern of two main branches, the Military Preventive Police and the Civil Detective Police. As this arrangement was not found to be satisfactory so in 1860 the Government of British India urged the Government of Punjab to look into the system of policing then prevalent in the province. However, as the issue was of general importance the central Government appointed a commission to inquire into the policing in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. The Calcutta Police Commission of 1860 recommended the abolition of the Military Arm of the police, the appointment of an Inspector General of Police in the Province and the placement of police in a district under the District Superintendent. The Commission recommended that only the District Magistrate should exercise any Police functions. Based on the recommendations of the commission the Government of India submitted a bill which was passed into law as Act V of 1861. The Police Act of 1861 was adopted. The organizational design that followed the Act survives to this day. The Punjab Police Rules of 1933 documented the police practices as they stood at that time and introduced some new measures for improving administration and operational effectiveness of police. The content of the Rules reveals that the Punjab Police had grown into a thoroughly professional police organization by 1934 and possessed considerable knowledge of the crime and criminals in the province. It had developed effective procedures and practices for dealing with various kinds of criminal activity. The administrative and disciplinary functions were also elaborated. The Rules have served as the model for similar sets of rules in other provinces of Pakistan and are still in force today.

Punjab Police after Independence

The Punjab Police played a significant part in handling the refugee crisis of 1947–48. It continued as a separate organization till 1955 when it was merged with the police of other provinces to create the West Pakistan Police. The DIG West Pakistan was Inayat Ali Shah. DIG East Pakistan and DIG West Pakistan used to report to one IG which during the decade of the 1950s was Qurban Ali Khan. There were several attempts to review and reform police organization and performance during the 1950s and 60s which however could not be implemented. The legal framework of police in Pakistan underwent a major change as a consequence of Devolution of Power Plan implemented between 2001 and 2006. The Plan provided for devolution of a considerable portion of Provincial Government's authority and functions to districts and introduction of public accountability of police. In line with Devolution of Power Plan, the office of Deputy Commissioner of the district was abolished in 2001 and a system of district governments was introduced through the Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2001. As a part of the Plan a new police law, the Police Order, replaced the Police Act 1861 in 2002. It brought sweeping changes to the police organization. The new law introduced public accountability in the form of Public Safety Commissions at 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 instituted functional specialization by separation of investigation from other functions of police. Currently the Punjab Police are engaged in counter terrorism operations in the province.

Organization

The Punjab Police is constituted by the Police Order 2002 and operates under Police Rules of 1934. There is a Central Police Office (CPO) at Lahore which has a number of functional branches like Legal Affairs Division (Legal Branch), Finance & Welfare, Establishment, Operations, Training, Research & Development, etc. These units report to the Inspector General of Police through their respective Additional Inspectors General of Police. The Regional Police Officers report to the Inspector General of Police directly and they do not form part of the Central Police Office (CPO), Punjab. The Inspector General of Police is ex-officio secretary to the Government of Punjab. The Punjab Police is staffed by officers of the Punjab Police and the Police Service of Pakistan. Specified forces in Punjab police department: *Anti Riot Force (ARF) *Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA) *Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) *Criminal Investigation Agency (CIA) *Special Protection Unit (SPU) * Punjab Elite Force *Punjab Boundary Force *Punjab River Police *Punjab Traffic Police * Punjab Highway Patrol * Dolphin Force *

Punjab Constabulary The Punjab Constabulary ( Punjabi, Urdu: پنجاب کانسٹیبلری) is a law enforcement agency in Pakistan which is responsible to maintain peace in Punjab Province by assisting Punjab Police. IG Police is the provincial police officer an ...

The main police formations are as follows: *Central Police Office (CPO), Punjab *Police Regions *Investigation Branch *Special Branch *Telecommunication Branch *Operation branch

Equipment

Beretta 92FS The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. The Beretta 92 was designed in 1975, and production began in 1976. Many variants in several different calibers co ...

Glock Pistols Glock Ges.m.b.H. (trademarked as GLOCK) is a weapons manufacturer headquartered in Deutsch-Wagram, Austria, named after its founder, Gaston Glock. While the company is best known for its line of polymer- framed pistols, it also produces field k ...

Heckler & Koch MP5 The Heckler & Koch MP5 (german: Maschinenpistole 5) is a 9x19mm Parabellum submachine gun, developed in the 1960s by a team of engineers from the German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch. There are over 100 variants and clones of the MP5, ...

- Pakistani MP5 (P2 & P3) and POF-5 variants in use (Manufactured under license by

Pakistan Ordnance Factories , type = State-owned company , industry = Firearms, Defense, Machinery , fate = , successor = , founded = , founder = , defunct = , hq_location_city = Wah Cantonment, Punjab , hq_location_country = Pakistan , area_served = worldw ...

) *

Type 56 assault rifle The Type 56 (; literally; "Assault Rifle, Model of 1956") is a Chinese 7.62×39mm rifle. It is a variant of the Soviet-designed AK-47 (specifically Type 3) and AKM rifles.Miller, David (2001). ''The Illustrated Directory of 20th Century Guns' ...

- Primary firearm of the Punjab Police *

Heckler & Koch G3 The Heckler & Koch G3 (''Gewehr'' 3) is a 7.62×51mm NATO, select-fire battle rifle developed in the 1950s by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch (H&K) in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency C ...

- Pakistani G3 (P3 & P4) variants in use (Manufactured under license by

) *

Rheinmetall MG 3 The MG 3 is a German general-purpose machine gun chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge. The weapon's design is derived from the World War II era MG 42 ''Einheitsmaschinengewehr'' (Universal machine gun) that fired the 7.92×57mm Mauser ...

- Mounted on vehicles (Manufactured under license by

) *

Shotguns A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small pellet-like spherical sub-proj ...

Riot Guns In current usage, a riot gun or less-lethal launcher is a type of firearm used to fire "non-lethal" or "less-lethal" ammunition for the purpose of suppressing riots or apprehending suspects with minimal harm or risk. Less-lethal launchers may ...

Vehicles

Mohafiz (Internal Security Vehicle),

Toyota Hilux The , stylized as HiLux and historically as Hi-Lux, is a series of pickup trucks produced and marketed by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. The majority of these vehicles are sold as pickup truck or cab chassis variants, although the ...

(Single Cab & Double Cabin Vigo),

Toyota Corolla The is a series of compact cars (formerly subcompact) manufactured and marketed globally by the Toyota Motor Corporation. Introduced in 1966, the Corolla was the best-selling car worldwide by 1974 and has been one of the best-selling cars in ...

Suzuki Cultus The Suzuki Cultus is a supermini car produced by the Japanese manufacturer Suzuki from 1983 to 2016. The nameplate is currently used as a rebadged second-generation Suzuki Celerio in Pakistan since 2017. It was first presented at the 25th ...

, Suzuki Mehran,

Nissan Patrol The is a series of full-size SUVs manufactured by Nissan in Japan and sold throughout the world. The Patrol has been available as either a short-wheelbase (SWB) three-door or a long-wheelbase (LWB) five-door chassis since 1951. The LWB versio ...

Suzuki Every The is a kei truck produced by the Japanese automaker Suzuki. The microvan version was originally called the Carry van until 1982 when the passenger van versions were renamed as the . In Japan, the Carry and Every are ''kei cars'' but the Suzu ...

Honda City The is a subcompact car which has been produced by the Japanese manufacturer Honda since 1981. The City was originally a 3-door hatchback/2-door convertible for the Japanese, European and Australasian markets. The 3-door City was retired in 1 ...

Foton Tunland The Foton Tunland is a budget compact pickup sold by the Chinese manufacturer Foton Motor sold in China since November 2011 as well as Australia, Colombia, and emerging markets. Overview To help manufacture the Tunland, joint venture agreements ...

Suzuki Swift The is a supermini car (B-segment) produced by Suzuki. The vehicle is classified as a B-segment marque in the European single market, a segment referred to as a supermini in the British Isles. Prior to this, the "Swift" nameplate had been appl ...

Toyota Land Cruiser The (also sometimes spelled as LandCruiser) is a series of four-wheel drive vehicles produced by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. It is Toyota's longest running series of models. , the sales of the Land Cruiser totalled more than ...

, Toyota Land Cruiser (70 Series),

Toyota Fortuner The Toyota Fortuner, also known as the Toyota SW4, is a mid-size SUV manufactured by the Japanese automaker Toyota since 2004. Built on the Hilux pickup truck platform, it features two/three rows of seats and is available in either rear-wheel d ...

Toyota Prius The is a car built by Toyota which has a hybrid drivetrain, combining an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. Initially offered as a four-door sedan, it has been produced only as a five-door liftback since 2003. In 2007, th ...

. Officers are allotted cars as per their rank, bulletproof vehicles are provided to officers serving at sensitive postings or the kind of security threats any particular officer has, not every officer.

Designations

Designations of Punjab Police are as follow:

Posts

Moharar, SHO, PSC, SDPO, DPO, CPO, RPO, CCPO, and PPO are posts, not ranks. So you may see a lower rank acting as a higher post for some time if required

Crime and controversies

The Anti-Corruption Establishment Punjab declared Punjab Police as the most corrupt public department in the province in a 2010 report. Members of Punjab Police have been involved in a number of criminal activities. In November, 2017 a man named Asif was killed in a fake encounter in Faisalabad. He was initially identified as a robber but later turned out to be unarmed innocent civilian who had an affair with the relative of DSP Gujranwala and left the country. He was on a visit to Pakistan when policemen in plain clothes shot and killed him. Sexual assault, harassment, and mistreatment of women is also common in Punjab Police. As per a 20 November 2017 news story by express.pk, two police officers namely Intizar Abbas and Najam Abbas of Punjab Police, Lahore tore the cloths of a woman, made a video and later tried to blackmail the woman and also shared the video via social media. Both were later removed from the Police force. It is unknown whether any legal action was taken against them of not. In a similar incident, Faisalabad police gang-raped the wife of another police officer named Manzoor Ahmad. Even elderly people are not safe from brutality of Punjab Police. In November 2017, a video surfaced on social media showed police torturing an elderly couple. The video shocked the public and whole police station was suspended. A seven-year-old child was arrested for kidnapping by Punjab Police in 2015. Another 12-year-old child was arrested by Punjab Police Bahawalpur after they failed to arrest his father who was one of the farmers named in an FIR. FIR was launched against farmers after they disagreed over prices of sugar cane at the sugar mill of Ch. Zaka Ashraf. The Boy had his exams coming and took his books to the cell where he studied.

Uniform change and controversy

In 2018, the Punjab police changed its standard uniform from its classic black shirts, Khaki Pants to an all olive-green uniform. The change was met with mixed reactions. The government claimed it had consulted professional designers before standardizing this new uniform, but many have criticized it as dull and circles within the police have argued it to be less attractive. Other reports have stated that due to the dull color, the newer uniform has not been approved for mass distribution amongst Punjab Police's force.

Head of Organization

* Inspectors General of Police is the Head of Punjab Police Pakistan. * The list of heads of this unit who commanded this organization of Punjab Police is as under:

References

External links

* {{Law enforcement in Pakistan Provincial law enforcement agencies of Pakistan 1861 establishments in British India