Rawalpindi police under fire for failed investigations

Submit complete challans in just half of 43,730 registered cases in a year

RAWALPINDI:

The performance of police investigation teams in submitting challans to courts during 2025 reportedly remained extremely disappointing in Rawalpindi. Investigating officers continued to inflate numbers by submitting temporary and incomplete challans merely to please senior officers, while practically failing to present fully completed challans.

Across Rawalpindi district's 34 police stations, a total of 43,730 cases were registered between January 1 and December 31. Investigating officers submitted 22,199 complete challans, while failing to submit complete challans in 20,531 cases.

By presenting combined data of temporary, incomplete and complete challans, police declared 5,718 cases as pending in official records.

Due to the non-submission of complete challans, accused persons in serious cases have begun securing bail and fleeing. Police investigation teams mostly submitted challans in cases involving kite flying and selling, begging, vagrancy, gambling, minor scuffles, women fleeing homes, liquor consumption and sale, fake cheques, arms recovery, narcotics (9-A and 9-B), tenancy disputes, dengue larvae recovery and mobile snatching cases.

However, they failed to submit complete challans in nearly 70 per cent of robbery, rape, murder, kidnapping, major theft and large fraud cases, allowing suspects to exploit legal loopholes.

As complete challans were not submitted, trials in major cases could not even begin.

Among the 34 police stations, Saddar Abad registered the highest number of cases at 3,317, followed by New Town with 3,239, Airport police station with 2,909, Taxila with 2,368 and Rawat with 2,201 cases.

The performance of the Women Police Station remained the most disappointing. Only 10 cases were registered throughout the year, despite over 100 applications being submitted, most of which were either rejected or settled through compromises. Chakri police station registered the fewest cases at 354, with no complainant approaching the station for 12 days during the year.

Chontra recorded 485 cases, while Mandrah registered 616 cases.

Out of the 10 cases at the Women Police Station, eight had incomplete or temporary challans submitted, while two are still pending. Overall, out of 43,730 cases registered, only 2,670 resulted in convictions. On merit and after complete hearings, only 1,434 cases led to convictions.

Under the law, investigating officers are constitutionally bound to submit challans within 14 days, yet not a single complete challan was submitted within this period throughout the year.

Alarmingly, the SSP Investigation office also considers incomplete and temporary challans as high performance and endorses the repeated submission of such challans in serious cases. This practice allows investigating officers, often in collusion with accused persons, to deliberately delay cases, enabling suspects to secure bail and abscond.

Senior advocate of the Supreme Court, Shanzeib Khan, stated that submitting challans within 14 days is difficult, if not impossible, and suggested extending the period to 40 days.

He called for establishing forensic labs in every division or dedicated desks at the Lahore Forensic Lab, reducing the number of witnesses, and abolishing the outdated system of formal witnesses.

Assistant Attorney General Malik Zaheer Arshad said criminal laws still date back to the British era and require revolutionary reforms in line with scientific advancement and social media realities.

He added that unless sweeping changes are made, delays in challans, verdicts, bail and absconding of accused will continue. He proposed abolishing bail in theft, robbery, vehicle theft and narcotics cases and making verdicts mandatory within 60 days, while all murder cases should be decided within one year.

He also recommended large-scale recruitment of judges and magistrates.

Meanwhile, a police spokesperson claimed that policing performance in 2025 was excellent, with 359 convicts punished, including 48 death sentences and 34 life imprisonments, and fines totalling Rs29.957 million imposed.