DNA

PESHAWAR: The escalating incidence of criminal activities in the Peshawar stands as a glaring indictment of the ineffectiveness of the present caretaker government. Following the tragic loss of 150 police personnel in the bomb explosion at Police Line Peshawar, no PSP officer of the Peshawar Police was relieved of their duties. Despite high expectations for reform under the leadership of the IGP, Akhtar Hayat, the envisioned changes in the structure of the Peshawar Police remain elusive.

Many had hoped that a distinguished CCPO would be appointed to take charge of the Peshawar Police, yet this aspiration too proved elusive. Allegedly, IGP Akhtar Hayat has been partial to the incumbent Peshawar Police Chief, Ijaz Khan, who has appointed several officers from their native district of Charsada to prominent and lucrative positions within the Peshawar Police. Unfortunately, a number of these individuals were implicated in corrupt practices and have since been suspended.

Moreover, PSP officers hailing from the provinces of Punjab and Sindh have been assigned to key roles within the Counter Terrorism Police and Special Branch police, commuting to their respective home districts every weekend. According to reliable sources within the police, had officers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa been entrusted with these critical responsibilities, their wealth of experience would have yielded a more efficacious outcome. Tragically, the current escalation of crime within the province is believed to be linked to the ongoing conflict between the governor and caretaker chief minister of the region.