Capacity conundrum: Investigation delayed is justice denied

Police fails to produce investigation reports for over 70% of cases registered since March.

RAWALPINDI: The cases are piling up as Rawalpindi police fails to timely submit investigation reports of cases they register to the prosecution branch.

The slow pace of preparing investigation reports, called challan in local parlance, is evident from the difference in number of cases that were registered since March and those sent for prosecution to the district courts.

The data provided by the prosecution branch showed that over 5,000 cases were registered in police stations across the district in last three months, while complete investigation reports for less than 30 per cent of the cases have been sent to the courts.

SHOs have traditionally been reluctant to register cases that become barometers of their performance. However, incumbent Rawalpindi City Police Officer Humayun Bashir Tarar ordered the SHOs to register cases without any let or hindrance.

The police claims to have completed investigation for 93 per cent of cases, whereas the prosecution branch puts it at under 40 per cent.

In April, around 1,750 cases were registered, but investigation reports for only 450 cases were submitted.

Similarly, in the months of February and March, the prosecution branch received reports of only 456 cases for over 3,000 registered cases during the same period.

According to the Police Ordinance, the department is bound to produce investigation report of a case within 14 days of its registration and inform the court about developments taking place.

Besides, the police is also supposed to inform the court about the pending cases from time to time to ensure fair trial and timely dispensation of justice.

City Police Officer Humayun Bashir Tarar could not be reached for comment.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 2^nd, 2014.