IGP takes encounters report to LHC today

LAHORE Punjabs top cop, Inspector General of Police Javed Iqbal will submit a report in the Lahore High Court today (Thursday) on the 370 police encounters taking place across Punjab since 2010, which eliminated 261 alleged gangsters. On June 14, the Chief Justice had directed the IGP to file a report on all encounter killings and also ordered him to constitute a committee to verify the facts. Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry was holding a suo motu hearing on the extrajudicial killing of the 23-year-old Shahbaz Butt, who was gunned down in a fake shootout in Nishtar Colony. The provincial Chief Secretary, Home Secretary and the IGP had appeared in the court in person during the June-14 hearing. The IGP, in order to stop the practice of fake encounters, has constituted a 10-member special board, headed by DIG Maj. (retd) Mubashar Ullah, it may be noted. The board and Inspection and Vigilance Cell, established in 10 regions of the Punjab, will also regularly monitor such cases in the future. The following members of Inspection and Vigilance Cell of each region will be responsible to monitor the fake police encounters. SSP Usama Mumtaz Raja of Investigation Branch Punjab for Capital City Lahore region, SP Muhammad Kashif Principal PTS Farooqabad for Sheikhupura region, SP Munir Masood Marth for Gujranwala region, CTO Rawalpindi Muhammad Azam for Rawalpindi region, SSP Kamran Yousaf Malik for Faisalabad region, SSP Ghazi Muhammad Salahuddin for Sargodha region, SP Muhammad Younas Butt for Sahiwal region, SSP Maqsood Ahmad Khichi for Multan region, SP Gohar Mushtaq Bhutta FOR DG Khan region, and SP Shaukat Murtaza Malhi has been nominated for Bahawalpur region. In case of the transfer of any member, the successor would be the part of the board. According to official notification issued by Addl. IG Investigation Muhammad Azam Joiya, any aggrieved family or legal heirs to a person killed in any fake encounter could approach and submit written application to the regional I&V Cell/members of the special board, who will forward the same to head of the board. Subsequently, a panel of enquiry officers would be nominated in this regard. According to the police record, at least 118 police encounters have taken place in Punjab in the fist five months of this year in which 81 alleged gangsters have been killed. Another 24 persons have been injured in the shootouts. Police sources further revealed that IG Javed Iqbal would convene a high-level meeting of the top police officers to ensure effective implementation of the plan.