Cop jailed for serving warrants over the phone

Sub inspector said he was saving time by calling witnesses.

LAHORE:

A sub inspector was sent to jail on Thursday after he told the court that he had served arrest warrants for absent witnesses by phone.

SI Arshad Iqbal of Factory Area police, Sheikhupura, appeared before Additional District and Sessions Judge Tahir Khan Niazi on Thursday in response to a show cause notice issued to his station house officer (SHO). The judge had asked the SHO to explain why witnesses to an alleged murder had not been produced in court for the last three hearings. He was hearing a private complaint alleging crimes including murder.

Asked whether the arrest warrants had been served, the sub inspector responded that they had.

Asked how, he said that he had called them on their mobile phones and told them that arrest warrants had been issued in their names and they should come to court. They did not come to court on Thursday.

The judge, incensed by the sub inspector’s response, asked him whether this was the correct procedure for serving arrest warrants. The SI said that he had called them up to save time. The judge sentenced the SI to a month in prison and sent him to the Sessions Court Bakhshi Khana. He ignored the SI’s profuse apologies.

Later in the day, SHO Muhammad Younis and other police officials appeared before the court and apologised.

A lawyer representing SI Iqbal submitted a bail plea. The judge admitted the plea and released the SI on bail against a Rs20,000 surety. He then issued notice to police official Sharafat Ali to submit a complete reply to the court at the next date.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 3^rd, 2012.