City of Saints plagued by crime

Amidst a period of poverty and inflation, citizens lost crores of rupees due to thefts and robberies, dysfunctional blockades and a lack patrolling in the city and surrounding areas.

Over 50 criminal incidents have been reported per day, over 1,500 per month and over 16,000 instances throughout the course of the year. Gulgasht Division ranked first in incidents, followed by Cantt Division, Saddar Division and City Division. Dozens of gangs involved in criminal incidents have been busted and stolen goods worth crores of rupees have been recovered, police officials said.

There has been an unsettling spike in the number of robberies in the city due to the malpractice of the Multan police. In the city and its surroundings, the blockade and patrolling system has been rendered ineffective, causing the city to fall prey to thieves and bandits. Meanwhile, investigating officers from BZ Police Station, Seetal Maari Police Station and New Multan Police Station among others continued to release people who had committed crimes by declaring them "tap thieves" and allegedly taking bribes. Over 16,000 incidents of theft, burglary and robbery occurred within the first eight months of 2023, costing citizens millions of rupees in cash, mobile phones, motorbikes, vehicles, gold jewelry and other valuable items.

Read  Over 18,000 criminal cases pending in Gujranwala

In Multan, over 7,000 incidents of motorcycle theft were reported and over 80 car-snatching incidents were reported during the robbery. While in more than 200 incidents of theft, people also lost their vehicles. More than 20 incidents of robbery and murder also took place during this period. People lost thousands of mobile phones, cash, jewelry, household valuables and other items worth millions of rupees during the incidents. In addition, dozens of citizens suffered injuries during the event as a result of bandits firing on resistance. Victims are still waiting for police to recover their stolen goods.

The citizens demanded that the police develop a strategy to control the crime rate and effectively contribute to public safety. Conversely, they tortured suspects who were caught in the hands of the public to death. At least five suspects were tortured in various locations before being turned over to the police. Sadiq Dogar, the recently-appointed CPO, faced his biggest task in controlling the increasing number of occurrences. To combat criminal elements, 200 suspected members of over 60 gangs were apprehended this year and stolen property worth over Rs80 million was recovered, police officials said, adding that the majority of the heirs received their belongings back.

Meanwhile, 70 percent of the accused who killed civilians have been arrested and brought to book and a serial killer responsible for the deaths of four people in Mumtazabad, Chahelyek and New Multan police station limits has also been apprehended by the police.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 29^th, 2023.