PESHAWAR: The new Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Qasim Ali Khan has said that immediate registration of FIR of every cognizable offence and uprooting the network of ice to bring an end to street crimes were the key tasks for the force in the provincial capital.
“One of our top priorities is massive operations against ice dealers, manufacturers and smugglers. Every step will be taken to bust factories and block the supply route, especially to the youth and students,” he told The News.
He hinted at launching an “Ice- Free Peshawar” campaign in the coming few days. The official said most of the ice addicts were involved in street crimes and violence.
An unprecedented increase has been reported in the number of ice addicts in recent years. This increase has added to the rising street crimes, including snatching of phone and cash, lifting cars and bikes, theft and shooting of victims for offering resistance.
With the unprecedented increase in street crimes in the past years, police went for burking, a practice of not registering cases to give a rosy picture to bosses, government and media with fake statistics of lesser crime ratio.
“I have directed the officers to register each and every case. We will have to come out of this comparative statistics thing and focus on providing a peaceful society to the common man,” the CCPO said. He said the police had been told to receive every complainant with respect and provide them instant relief.
This will be something revolutionary and bold on part of the police as many of the past bosses failed to ensure registration of each and every case.
There were reports that in many areas only a few percent of crime was reported by the police while the majority of the cases went unregistered in the last many years. In some cases, people stopped approaching police as they knew the cops will avoid registering the FIR.
This encouraged the criminal gangs as they have no fear of police action and follow-up of cases, knowing the cops were busy presenting a rosy picture to the bosses, media and government. This situation resulted in an unprecedented increase in street crime, including violent incidents and triggered fear among the local populace.
“From now, concerned police officers will be held responsible for street crimes in their areas. They are told to register cases and go after the gangs instead of presenting false statistics,” warned Qasim Ali.
The CCPO said he was pulling the police performance evaluation out of the number games, which were mostly fudged.
“There should be no comparative data as it is mostly fudged. Our progress review will be against the ongoing crimes. We will share how much crime we detected and how much we couldn’t, with reasons/limitations,” said the CCPO.
He added there will be no innumerable progress FIRs, lodged only to show a better figure of recovery and good work.
This move to report every crime needs to be supported and appreciated by the government as well as the inspector general of police. There will definitely be a rise in statistics when all genuine cases are registered for the first time but that needs to be considered as a first major step in the right direction. If supported, this will encourage genuine policing efforts that will help eliminate criminal rings and mafias within no time.
“We are activating the 15 service on the pattern of Punjab to provide direct access to police to the public. It’s a difficult thing to implement but we will maintain a proper record of the 15 calls,” said the Peshawar Police chief. About working out the cases, Qasim Ali said he was proposing a proper dedicated and proportionate investigation police for Peshawar to the government for effectively following up on the cases. There are hardly three to four policemen in the investigation wing, most of whom are transferred to investigation unwillingly who don’t perform well.
He said there should be more senior officers in the investigation wing for effectively following up on the cases.
The CCPO said the dispute resolution councils will be restructured and new members will be added so these forums worked effectively to end hundreds of blood disputes that create serious law and order when the two parties encounter each other.
The police chief said campaigns were being launched against aerial firing, brandishing of weapons by individuals and groups, usury, land grabbers and other mafias in coming days.
He added merit will be the key in posting and transfer of officers. He said action will be taken against those involved in anything wrong or not performing well while those doing genuinely well on ground will be encouraged and rewarded.
The CCPO said the police stations and posts in peripheries will be further strengthened and provided more technology, facilities and manpower to ensure peace in their areas. He said no interference in the affairs of the force from outside will be tolerated.
