Police Brutality? Man ‘thrashed’ by cops for failing to stop

The police allegedly rammed him from behind, after which they thrashed him with their batons, sources said.

RAWALPINDI: A man was admitted to District Headquarters Hospital in Rawalpindi after he was allegedly thrashed and beaten up by the police, sources said. According to sources in the police department, Irfan Raza, a driver for a government department, was going to work on his motorcycle, when in the Racecourse police area a police unit signaled for him to stop. The motorcyclist ignored the police and continued ahead. The police allegedly chased him and rammed him from behind, after which they allegedly thrashed him with their batons, sources said.  When they realized the severity of his injuries, the policemen panicked and rushed him to the hospital.  Sub-inspector Muhammad Hussain, meanwhile, registered a road accident case regarding the incident at the police station. A police spokesman only said that a man had been injured in an accident but denied he was thrashed by the police. He said they were investigating. Doctors at the hospital said Raza injuries were serious but not life-threatening.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 6^th, 2014.