Oversight: Eight inspection teams formed to check police behaviour

The teams will pay surprise visits to police stations and report directly to the IGP.

PESHAWAR: Inspector General Police (IGP) Ihsan Ghani on Tuesday constituted eight inspection teams to pay surprise visits to police stations across the province.

Inspection teams have been tasked to check staff behaviour towards the public, abusive interrogation techniques, illegal confinement without registering an FIR and timely filing of reports.



“We had complaints that police torture people who are arrested on different charges and their behaviour is not appropriate when dealing with the public,” said a police official. “Strict action will be also taken against those SHOs who keep people in illegal confinement without charges. Surprise visits by senior police officials will ensure this.”

The teams will send reports directly to the IGP who will take action against officials found guilty, he added. Inspection teams have also been empowered to suspend any police official on the spot for illegal confinement and arrest without charge.

A committee headed by DIG Headquarters Tariq Javed has been assigned responsibility for the Peshawar region, Additional IGP Masood Khan Afridi for Mardan, DIG Headquarters (Investigation) Asif Zafar Cheema for Hazara, DIG Inquiry and Inspection Mubarakzeb for Malakand, AIG Finance Quresh Khan for Bannu, AIG establishment Syed Fida Hussain for DI Khan, directorate of counterterrorism DIG Nisar Ahmad for Kohat, and Additional IGP Operations Mian Muhammad Asif will look after traffic in Peshawar.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4^th, 2013.