Islamabad, Feb 24 (IANS) Citing a new report by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) which reveals that the Punjab province’s Crime Control Department (CCD) might be more violent than any other specialised squads in the country, a report has stated that policing in Pakistan cannot improve if contempt for human life goes unpunished.
The CCD’s first year of operations saw at least 670 encounters that claimed lives of 924 suspects between April-December 2025. During the same period, only two police personnel were killed.
“While a disproportionate ratio may suggest the police force is highly trained and professional, the astounding difference here implies something else is at play. The government has no valid counterpoint to the HRCP’s call for an independent judicial inquiry,” an editorial in leading Pakistani daily ‘The Express Tribune’ mentioned.
More than two encounters occurred on an average per day, with heavy concentration in districts like Lahore and Faisalabad. The official statements about these killings stated that suspects opened fire, police conducted “retaliatory” fire, suspects were fatally injured. Civilian witnesses were not found, although some of the encounters occurred in busy areas.
“Policing in Pakistan cannot improve if such contempt for human life goes unpunished. Encounters are flat-out illegal under Pakistani and international law. Yet, despite decades of embarrassing revelations, federal and provincial governments continue to do little more than pay lip service to the issue. Unfortunately, ‘Safe Punjab’ cannot be built on the bones of victims of extrajudicial murder. If we are to become a great nation, we must first become a nation of laws, where even the worst among us are guaranteed their rights,” The Express Tribune stated.
Last week, the HRCP condemned CCD in Punjab province for pursuing a deliberate policy of staged encounters resulting in extrajudicial killings that fundamentally undermines the rule of law and constitutional protections in the province. Citing various media reports, the HRCP documented at least 670 CCD-led encounters over the course of eight months in Punjab in 2025, resulting in the deaths of 924 suspects, with two police officers killed during the same period.
“The extreme casualty imbalance — averaging more than two fatal encounters daily — combined with the uniformity of operational patterns across districts, indicates an institutionalised practice rather than isolated incidents of misconduct. The fact-finding mission has therefore called for an urgent high-level judicial inquiry into these deaths,” the HRCP stated.
The organisation documented a pervasive climate of fear among victims’ families. One family reported pressure from police officials to bury the deceased immediately and claimed they were warned that other relatives could be killed if they pursued the case further. Such intimidation, it said, constitutes criminal conduct and represents a fundamental obstruction of justice.
“The practice of police encounters as a method of crime control has a long and troubling history in Pakistan. Successive provincial governments, especially in Punjab and Sindh, have defended such actions as necessary to combat crime, militancy or systemic inefficiencies within the criminal justice system,” the HRCP stated.
However, the organisation highlighted that Pakistani courts, civil society organisations and human rights bodies have repeatedly raised concerns regarding extrajudicial killings, the surrounding lack of accountability and violations of the right to life guaranteed under Article 9 of Pakistan’s Constitution.
As per the HRCP findings, “CCD operations fail to comply with the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which require that lethal force be absolutely necessary and proportionate, and that violators be held accountable.”
–IANS
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