Transfer to Islamabad SSP of Sialkot lynching fame to protect diplomats

Former DPO Chauhan to assume charge as SSP security in Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD:


Former district police officer (DPO) Sialkot Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Waqar Chauhan will be transferred to the Capital Police in a few days. He was previously heading Sialkot police, at a time when the two brothers were beaten to death by locals, last year.


An official source said Chauhan had been serving as an officer on special duty (OSD) since then. The source claimed Chauhan’s father-in-law, former deputy inspector general (DIG) Rao Iqbal, played an instrumental role in making his transfer possible. He said Chauhan was labelled and perceived as “negligent” following the incident, which made it increasingly difficult for him to manage his post.


The source added Inspector General of Police (IGP) Capital Bani Ameen, who requested Chauhan’s services, has been a colleague of Chauhan’s father-in-law in the National Police Academy.

The source said that currently, there is no vacant post available against the rank of SSP in Capital Police. However, IGP Ameen decided to submit the services of SSP security Abbas Ahsan to the establishment division to accommodate Chauhan. The source added that Chauhan will assume the charge of diplomats’ security, as SSP security in Islamabad.

Footage of the lynching incident, filmed using a mobile phone video camera, was aired on television channels and went viral on social networking websites, sparking public fury. The video showed policemen standing on the sidelines, as a cheering mob mercilessly lynched Mughees, 19, and Muneeb, 16, with iron rods at Doburji Chowk in Sialkot. Members of the mob accused the brothers of being robbers but investigations into the case proved otherwise.



Published in The Express Tribune, August 17th, 2011.

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