Mental health issues affecting Punjab Police morale
Psychological woes come in wake of rising incidents of suicide and violent behaviour
PHOTO: REUTERS
LAHORE:
Counselling is a routine activity, as casual as going for a medical check-up, in the modern world. Besides being acceptable in today’s fast-paced world, psychological profiling and counselling related to policing and law enforcement are also in place. However, these services are inadequate, if not missing, in our part of the world.
In wake of increasing incidents of suicide and violent behaviour among Punjab Police officers, there is a need to realise this gap. The most recent incident is the murder committed by Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mufakhar Adeel. The gruesome murder, that too of a former additional advocate general of Punjab, by an officer of the SSP’s rank, is a unique case.
The SSP reportedly murdered his friend, Shahbaz Tatla, and decomposed his body by placing it in acid. A brief description of the modus operandi can give a hint of the state of mind of the officer. The way this premeditated murder was committed by an officer of this rank was unheard of before.
A few weeks ago, SSP Ibrar Hussain Naikokara reportedly shot himself dead over a domestic dispute in Rawalpindi. Last month, a police constable had allegedly attacked a DIG in Qila Gujjar Singh police lines with a knife.
Coronavirus scare: Punjab declares health emergency
A few years ago, a DPO had shot himself dead. There have been dozens of incidents in recent years in which upper subordinates and lower-cadre police officials shot themselves dead during duty.
Torture and stress management
Policing in Pakistan is closely linked with torture, violence, hectic job timings and working in a stressful environment. The number of traumatic incidents, involving domestic torture, sexual abuse, traffic accidents, terrorism and murder, is too high. Police officials are the first responders to these incidents.
Besides this, police investigations and operations in public dealing are highly dependent on torture. In an overwhelming majority of investigations, confession through coercion is the departmental norm.
Other than investigations, law and order and other operations, police also rely heavily on torture. Due to this employees of the department face all sorts of pressure during work. These include unjust duty hours, hierarchical and bureaucratic bottlenecks and influence in the context of power dynamics.
All these issues, in one way or another, are closely linked with the psychological state of the officials.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 15th, 2020.
Counselling is a routine activity, as casual as going for a medical check-up, in the modern world. Besides being acceptable in today’s fast-paced world, psychological profiling and counselling related to policing and law enforcement are also in place. However, these services are inadequate, if not missing, in our part of the world.
In wake of increasing incidents of suicide and violent behaviour among Punjab Police officers, there is a need to realise this gap. The most recent incident is the murder committed by Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mufakhar Adeel. The gruesome murder, that too of a former additional advocate general of Punjab, by an officer of the SSP’s rank, is a unique case.
The SSP reportedly murdered his friend, Shahbaz Tatla, and decomposed his body by placing it in acid. A brief description of the modus operandi can give a hint of the state of mind of the officer. The way this premeditated murder was committed by an officer of this rank was unheard of before.
A few weeks ago, SSP Ibrar Hussain Naikokara reportedly shot himself dead over a domestic dispute in Rawalpindi. Last month, a police constable had allegedly attacked a DIG in Qila Gujjar Singh police lines with a knife.
Coronavirus scare: Punjab declares health emergency
A few years ago, a DPO had shot himself dead. There have been dozens of incidents in recent years in which upper subordinates and lower-cadre police officials shot themselves dead during duty.
Torture and stress management
Policing in Pakistan is closely linked with torture, violence, hectic job timings and working in a stressful environment. The number of traumatic incidents, involving domestic torture, sexual abuse, traffic accidents, terrorism and murder, is too high. Police officials are the first responders to these incidents.
Besides this, police investigations and operations in public dealing are highly dependent on torture. In an overwhelming majority of investigations, confession through coercion is the departmental norm.
Other than investigations, law and order and other operations, police also rely heavily on torture. Due to this employees of the department face all sorts of pressure during work. These include unjust duty hours, hierarchical and bureaucratic bottlenecks and influence in the context of power dynamics.
All these issues, in one way or another, are closely linked with the psychological state of the officials.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 15th, 2020.