Delays in submitting challans to the appropriate courts within the constitutional and legal period of two weeks persist across the Rawalpindi district in 2025, despite investigations being completed for cases registered at its 31 police stations.
Between January 1 and August 31, 2025, a total of 32,901 cases were registered in the district. Of these, police managed to submit only 19,017 challanscomprising full, interim, and incomplete submissions — leaving 13,884 cases pending.
More than half of the challans submitted relate to minor offences, including gambling, vagrancy, electricity theft, alcohol consumption and sale, dengue larvae seizures, drug trafficking, minor altercations, and small-scale arms recovery.
In contrast, challans for serious crimes — such as robbery, rape, murder, abduction, and sexual assault against women — were fewer, with 30-40% submitted as incomplete or interim challans.
New Town Police Station had the highest number of pending challans, with 1,380 cases awaiting submission as of September 1. Other police stations with significant backlogs included Sadiqabad PS (1,361), Chaklala PS (1,020), Rawat PS (979), and Dhamial PS (812). By comparison, Women PS had only two pending challans.
By law, investigation officers (IOs) are required to submit a challan within 14 days. While the Investigation SP regularly holds meetings and enforces strict oversight, officers frequently submit interim or incomplete challans to temporarily satisfy the SP, enabling suspects in serious cases to exploit delays, secure bail, and abscond. Consequently, the number of court fugitives and declared absconders continues to rise.
Technical and logistical challenges further impede timely submission. Officers are allocated minimal funds for investigations and stationery — often enough for only a single day's work — forcing them to cover costs from personal funds or, in some instances, seek contributions from suspects and complainants for petrol, stationery, challan preparation, suspect transport, and forensic lab submissions.
Senior criminal lawyers have proposed urgent reforms to address these delays.
Advocate Shan Zeb Khan of the Supreme Court recommended extending the challan submission period from two weeks to 30-40 days, establishing forensic labs in every division to expedite lien reports, limiting witness lists in challans to one witness per group (set), and doubling investigation allowances for officers.
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