Sleuths' performance remains abysmal

Investigation teams of the district's 31 police stations showed poor performance in submitting complete challans to courts during the first six months of 2026.

Between Jan 1 and June 30, a total of 15,157 cases were registered across the district. During the same period, police investigation teams submitted only 5,258 complete challans within the legal timeframe, preventing trials in many serious cases from commencing.

Many suspects secured bail due to non-submission of challans and subsequently absconded.

According to court data, police failed to submit complete challans in 9,899 cases. The Women Police Station registered only eight cases during the first six months of the year, while female investigating officers submitted complete challans in only three of them.

New Town Police registered the highest number of cases, 1,212, but submitted complete challans in only 418. Sadiqabad Police registered 1,048 cases and submitted 310 complete challans.

Waris Khan Police registered 806 cases and submitted 256 complete challans, while Chaklala Police registered 877 cases and submitted 246 complete challans.

Chakri Police registered the fewest cases, 102, and submitted complete challans in 58 of them. Chontra Police registered 145 cases but submitted only 25 complete challans.

Mandrah Police registered 176 cases and submitted 67 challans, while Airport Police registered 188 cases and submitted 65 challans.

During the period, suspects could not be traced in 454 FIRs, while 1,063 FIRs were cancelled on various grounds.

Most of the complete challans submitted by investigation teams related to minor offences, including petty fights, vagrancy, gambling, alcohol consumption, liquor recovery, girls leaving home, illegal weapons, fake cheques, dengue larvae, narcotics under Sections 9-A and 9-B, and traffic accidents.

However, complete challans were not submitted in most serious cases, including murder, robbery, kidnapping, car theft, gang rape and major narcotics cases.

Legal experts said that even if a trial begins on the basis of an incomplete or interim challan, the proceedings return to the starting point when a new challan is submitted. Delays in filing complete challans also allow suspects in serious cases to obtain bail.

Retired District and Sessions Judge Shaukat Ali said the legal requirement to submit complete challans within 14 days should be extended to 40 days to allow sufficient time for forensic reports.

He also suggested ending the right to bail in serious cases due to non-submission of challans and establishing forensic laboratories at every divisional level, or at least one for every two divisions.

Supreme Court lawyer and criminal law expert Shan Zeb Khan said investigation officers' expenses for arrests and laboratory testing in serious cases should be doubled, only one witness should be kept for each set, and repeated adjournments beyond three hearings should be barred.

District Bar Secretary Qamarul Haq Khan Niazi said retired sessions judges should be appointed for one year in every district to clear the growing backlog of cases.

A police spokesperson maintained that investigation teams were performing well, resulting in more convictions, and said significant improvements had been made in the challan system.