Five KP cops suspended for torturing women suspects

MINGORA: Swat District Police Officer (DPO) Dilawar Khan Bangash on Wednesday suspended five police officials, including station house officer (SHO) of the Saidu Sharif Police Station, on charges of assaulting and publically torturing three women who had been accused of theft.

The DPO took action against cops after a video went viral on social media in which policemen were seen thrashing and misbehaving with the three women suspects from whom police had allegedly recovered 19 tolas stolen gold and the cash amount of Rs100,000.

The DPO said nobody would be allowed to take the law into their own hands, adding torture on arrested people in police custody would not be allowed and a strict action taken against officials involved in such illegal and unlawful activities.

According to a press release issued from the office of DPO Swat, the cops include Sub-Inspector Rafiullah, SHO of Saidu Sharif, Sub-Inspector Ayaz Ahmed, Assistant SHO Kokarai, constables Muhammad Alam, Ishaq and Fazal Khaliq.

The DPO also constituted an inquiry committee comprising SP Investigation Nazar Khan and DSP City Pir Said to submit a report on the incident within 24 hours. Talking to the media, Additional SP Asif Bahadar said action was already taken against the erring cops.

"Women have high dignity in our law and society and no one is allowed to treat them extra-judicially," he said, adding that law was equal for all the citizens irrespective of their status and post.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mahmood Khan took a serious notice of the publically torturing women by police who had been arrested on charges of theft in Swat and ordered Inspector General of Police Sanaullah Abbasi to suspend the cops, register a case against them and submit a report on the incident.

An official handout said the chief minister termed the incident shameful, against the Pakhtun norms and totally unacceptable. He said the cops found involved in the incident would be dealt with sternly as per the law and no one would be allowed to transgress his powers.