LHC rules police cannot humiliate suspects in custody

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ruled that police have no authority to punish, humiliate or degrade suspects in custody, observing that every accused person enjoys constitutional protections and must be treated with dignity regardless of the allegations against them.

Justice Ali Zia Bajwa issued the ruling while disposing of a contempt petition filed against the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Punjab, the Regional Police Officer (RPO) Gujranwala and other officials over viral videos allegedly showing suspects having their heads shaved while in police custody.

The court directed the RPO Gujranwala to conduct a comprehensive inquiry into the incident, identify all officials responsible and take appropriate disciplinary action against those found involved. In its order, the court observed that the constitutional role of the police is to prevent crime and investigate offences in accordance with the law, not to punish, disgrace or publicly humiliate individuals in custody.

Justice Bajwa held that every detainee is entitled to the protection of fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution and that law enforcement authorities are duty-bound to treat all suspects with dignity and respect.

The court further observed that there is no legal basis for degrading or publicly humiliating an accused person and warned that such conduct violates the rule of law and will not be tolerated.

Reaffirming the principle of due process, the court noted that every accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law, irrespective of the seriousness of the allegations.

According to the court order, police claimed in their report that they were not involved in shaving the suspects' heads. However, the court ordered the RPO to carry out a thorough inquiry to fix responsibility and ensure appropriate action against any officials found culpable.