2 cops booked on charges of unethical behaviour

Islamabad
The Islamabad Police authorities have ordered lodging of an FIR against two cops of SP Rural Special Squad following an investigation report as they were found involved in a serious crime committed against two young women at Lohi Bher Police Station.
The women were arrested in a fake raid on a guesthouse on March 27 at a posh colony in Rural Circle, reliable sources told ‘The News’.
Minister for Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, considering gravity of the offence, ordered an inquiry on receiving information about the alleged objectionable behaviour of the cops in the police station and appointed AIG (Operations) as inquiry officer.
The interior minister, when contacted by this correspondent for his comments, said that anti-social elements would be washed out from society.
Consequently, the Lohi Bher Police have registered a case under sections 354 and 392 PPC against two cops later identified as Raja Inam Ilahi, son of Raja Muhammad Nawaz, resident of Dhoke Rajgan, Karal, Islamabad, and Adnan Khan, son of Naseer Khan, resident of Dhoke Mohri, Bhara Kahu.
The police team didn’t fulfil legal requirements before conducting the raid on the guesthouse, says the inquiry report adding that neither was area magistrate informed nor was search warrants obtained from the court of law.
The inquiry officer recorded statements of the victim women, members of the raiding team and the cops involved in the incident and examined the circumstantial evidence, and found the cops guilty and confirmed the happening in his report, police sources said and added the report had been sent to higher authorities with a strong recommendation to lodge an FIR against the cops involved in misusing their authority and their involvement in unethical activities.
Action was initiated after the two victim women lodged a written complaint with the office of IGP, Islamabad, saying that they were humiliated by two cops on the premises of the police station.
The report said nine women and four men, including two victims hailing from Lahore, were picked up from a guesthouse for their alleged involvement in unethical activities, but three persons were freed after a telephone call made by a SP of the Islamabad Police currently transferred to the FIA as assistant director while women were taken to the Lohi Bher Police Station.
The two victim women, when contacted by this correspondent, said that the members of the raiding team stormed into their rooms and held them at gunpoint, adding that they collected valuables, snatched gold ornaments and cash and huddled them in their vehicles. They alleged that the team members opened beer tins recovered from the guesthouse and started drinking.
“Two cops separated us from other women and molested and thrashed us when we resisted,” the victims said.
Evidence and witnesses, during inquiry, confirmed the allegation levelled by those women, the report disclosed.
The cops involved in releasing three people belonging to Swat and Dir who were arrested during the raid, confessed while recording their statement before the inquiry officer that they freed three persons on the influence of Gulfam Nasir, SP of the Islamabad Police, saying that the officer called them soon after the arrest of the suspects from the guesthouse and ordered to release them immediately.
But SP Gulfam Nasir, who is on deputation with the FIA as assistant director, when contacted, rebuffed the allegation saying that he had nothing to do with the issue, however, he said that he investigated the matter on his own when it came to his notice. The inquiry officer collected forensic evidence which indicated his involvement.
The cops admitted that they released a girl arrested from the guesthouse in the raid along with a driver.
The complainant women alleged that the raiding team snatched gold ornaments, mobile phone set from them and cash of Rs450,000 from three people but gave the cash to the suspects and freed them. The cops endorsed the allegation, during recording statement before the inquiry officer, saying that they gave the money back to the suspects on the direction of SP Gulfam Nasir. But the SP, when asked by this correspondent, disagreed with the claim.
SP (Rural Zone) Yasir Afridi, when contacted by this scribe for his comments, expressed his ignorance about the gravity of the incident. However, he admitted that one carton of beer and some bottles of branded liquor recovered from the guesthouse were found missing and the raiding team didn’t dump all items confiscated from the guesthouse. He said that an inquiry in this regard had been initiated.