While showing dismay over lackluster performance of police stations, police authorities have issued fresh orders to detain illegal residents and transfer them to designated holding centres ahead of their deportation to Afghanistan.
City Police Officer (CPO) Khalid Hamdani has expressed deep dissatisfaction over the underwhelming performance of local police circles and Station House Officers (SHOs) in enforcing previously issued directives.
According to sources, the ongoing campaign to identify and repatriate Afghan nationals residing unlawfully in Rawalpindi has entered a more aggressive phase.
In a formal directive, CPO Hamdani instructed all Sub-Divisional Police Officers (SDPOs) and SHOs to take immediate and decisive action. The orders have also been communicated to Operations SSP Kashif Zulfiqar, Security SP, and all three divisional SPs. The CPO emphasised the need for strict action against Afghan nationals who are in possession of Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC), individuals whose visas have expired or who have overstayed, persons lacking any legal documentation, and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) token holders living or working within city limits.
The CPO made it clear that such individuals must be taken into custody and transferred to official holding centres to initiate the repatriation process.
The directive also pointed to the disappointing performance at the police station level, noting that previous instructions had not been implemented with the seriousness they required.
The CPO reiterated that strict compliance is mandatory, and daily progress reports on arrests and detentions must be submitted to the CPO's office without delay. The order concluded with a stern warning that any failure to enforce these directives will not be tolerated.
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