Law and order: Shahbaz orders crackdown on criminals across Punjab

CM gives police two months to rid Lahore of crime and criminal gangs

LAHORE: Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday ordered a crackdown on criminals across the province.

Presiding over a meeting of the provincial cabinet committee on law and order and security arrangements for Eidul Azha, Sharif tasked the city police with eliminating crime and criminal gangs from the Punjab capital within two months. He directed law enforcement agencies to make foolproof security arrangements and develop a plan to ensure security for important places in the province on Eid.

He said that maintenance of law and order and protection of people’s lives and properties was a top priority of the government. He said that solid steps were being taken for this purpose.

The chief minister said the government had provided maximum resources to police to ensure peace and create a sense of protection among people. He said it was police’s responsibility to curb crime and come up to people’s expectations.

He said that Pakistan was passing through a critical phase and facing the challenge of terrorism. In the prevailing situation, he said, police should spare no effort to ensure peace.

He said there was a need to break networks of criminal gangs. He acknowledged, however, that police had fought terrorism with courage and sacrificed several lives in this fight.

He said it was need of the hour to purge the society of crime and promote a sense of protection in the society. He said that laws should be enforced at every cost. He said that merit had been promoted in the police force and it had been given a free hand to curb crime. He said that steps being taken to curb crime would be reviewed and police officials showing an outstanding performance would be encouraged.

Sharif said the government and security institutions could not afford negligence in the prevailing circumstances. He said that some anti-social elements were out to create a law and order situation in the country.

He said that law enforcement agencies would have to keep a vigilant eye on such elements and eliminate them. He ordered foolproof security at mosques, imambargahs, parks and other important public places. He said that additional force should be deployed at important places.

He said that senior police officers should patrol their areas and ensure complete implementation of security arrangements. He said the provincial cabinet committee should monitor implementation of security arrangements throughout the Punjab.

Punjab Police Inspector General Mushtaq Ahmed Sukhera briefed the meeting about the security arrangements for Eid. He said that police had evolved a strategy for this purpose and every senior police officer had taken solid steps for security in his area.

Special Assistant to Chief Minister Rana Maqbool Ahmed was also present at the meeting.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 12^th, 2016.