CTD, DRC, PAS, PAL not mentioned, CPO sends draft to RPOs, ex-IGs
PESHAWAR: To the surprise of many, a proposed draft of the Police Act 2016 prepared by the provincial government has undone most of the reform initiatives undertaken by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police during the last two years, a sources confided to The News.
The source said the Home and Tribal Affairs Department has sent a proposed draft of new Police Act to the Central Police Office for comments. It has been forwarded to all the regional police officers and senior police commanders for review.
“Surprisingly, a number of reform initiatives that received wide scale appreciation and were owned by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government as its hallmark achievement have been dropped in the draft sent to the Central Police Office,” a source disclosed, adding this is equal to reversing the reforms in the force.
When contacted, the Inspector General of Police Nasir Khan Durrani confirmed that his office has received the draft prepared by the Home Department. He declined to comment on the document.
“The draft prepared by the Home Department has been sent to all RPOs, heads of police units and retired IGPs for their feedback,” Nasir Durrani told The News. A source revealed that the concept of having specialised units like Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and Elite Force, the most significant feature of the draft proposed by the Police Department vide section 12(3), has been deleted from the Home Department’s draft sent to the Central Police Office for comments. The KP is faced with terrorism for over a decade and the police had to play the frontline role to counter the menace by setting up CTD and other forces.
“Besides, a number of public service projects including Police Assistance Lines working as facilitation centre for the general public, and Police Access Service through which the public has been given access to the Central Police Office, proposed by police vide section 16(7) of its draft have also been dropped. Further, the Dispute Resolution Councils, providing speedy justice to the citizens through Alternate Dispute Resolution, could not find its place in the document,” the source disclosed.
Senior police officers said the most surprising feature is that in the chapter on the duties and responsibilities of police proposed in section 3(e) and 4(d) of the original draft, the role of police in countering terrorism and militancy and protection of minorities (added in the proposed Police draft) has been deleted.
A ‘Cold War’ has been going on between bureaucracy and police for quite some time and it has affected a number of things. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan had recently directed the civil and police bureaucrats to end their differences and concentrate on working for the welfare of the people.
A source said the KP Police had proposed setting up Directorate of Training along with the specialised schools of Investigation, Intelligence, Public Disorder & Riot Management, Explosives Handling and Tactics and Information Technology but that too has no mention in the proposed Act.
As per the Home Department’s draft, the Inspector General of Police will recommend the names of officers for posting as Regional Police Officers and District Police Officers to the Provincial Public Safety Commission which will give final approval subject to some procedure not explained in the Act but left to the rules making body.
“This procedure is in total contrast with the present policy of the provincial government by which it has authorised the IGP to make all the operational transfers /postings and will undermine the operational autonomy of police,” some police officials opined when approached.
Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had constituted a cabinet committee comprising three cabinet ministers along with the Advocate General and the Secretary Law Department for finalising the draft proposed by the Police Department. The committee after thorough deliberations finalised the draft and sent it to the government for approval on February 11, 2016.
“However, drastic changes have been made in the new draft by amending 50 of the 73 substantive sections thereby altering the entire scheme of Police Act proposed by the cabinet committee,” senior police officials pointed out.