Boy detained, released after taking money

LAHORE:Mozang police allegedly detained an ‘innocent’ boy in a dispute of two other parties in wee hours of Wednesday and took away four chairs and two boxes of tools from a shop.

The victim, Usama, raised hue and cry to convince the police that he had nothing to do with the matter between one Amir and his uncle Shahid, but the police paid no heed and detained him, reasons best known to SP Civil Lines who was sitting in the Mozang police station.

A man, Amir, filed a complaint against one Shahid and accused him of demanding extortion money on Tuesday (March 10). Mozang police raided the place of Shahid's nephews, Mueed and Usama, who already have a property dispute with him and no speaking terms with his paternal uncle Shahid. Usama repeatedly told the cops that they had no relations with his uncle Shahid, but the police dragged him into the police van at around 11:45pm. Later, the cops allegedly entered the shop of Shahid’s another nephew Arshaman, son of late Muhammad Shahbaz, and seized four chairs and two bags of tools of his brother Shazi. A cop, Amir, who claimed to be the kar-e-khas of Mozang SHO, was already aware of the dispute between Usama and his uncle Shahid. The cop, who lived on Lawrence Road near BISE Lahore, used to receive ‘kharcha pani’ from late Muhammad Ejaz, father of Usama, the residents of the area alleged. The whole area of Mozang and Lytton Road know that boys Usama and Moeed have a property dispute with his uncle Shahid after the death of their father Ejaz.

Interesting part of the story was that the police took Usama to Zila Kutcheri on Wednesday and told him that his FIR would be quashed, if he paid Rs5,000. Usama’s family paid the money and Usama was released after receiving his thumb impression on papers. He was assured by the Mozang cops that he would never be summoned in future in this regard.

Strangely, police did not produce Usama before any magistrate or judge. The family members of Usama requested the police to provide a copy of the FIR or any other paper that could tell them on which charges Usama was detained, but the police did not give them any paper. It is pertinent to mention that Amir filed the same complaint against Shahid some months back and the police had detained them under Section 751.

CCPO Zulfiqar Hameed has taken notice of the incident and directed SP Civil Lines to look into the matter and take stern departmental action against the cops, if found guilty. When contacted, SP Civil Lines said that justice would be done and cops would be taken to task, if they were found guilty in the inquiry.