Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has given police officers four weeks to improve the law and order situation across the province, with particular attention to crimes against women and children. She warned that officers concerned would be removed if conditions did not improve. The instruction was given at a special law and order meeting held in Lahore on Thursday, October 22, which regional police officers and district police officers attended through a video link.
What the chief minister ordered
At the meeting, the chief minister said she was seriously concerned about crimes against women and children. She asked for detailed briefings on the security situation in every division and district, and told police to intensify action against corruption within the department. Officials involved in corrupt practices were to face strict action, and she ordered effective steps to stop wheat smuggling in all districts, especially areas along provincial borders.
On traffic, she said she was dissatisfied with the current management and directed strict action against overspeeding. She also ordered proactive operations against illegal weapons and asked authorities to ensure a ban on camera-equipped glasses and other surveillance devices. Visible police patrolling across the province was ordered to give citizens a sense of security and to deter criminals.
Maryam Nawaz also directed police officers to contact the organisers of the Tablighi congregation personally, and asked for motorcycles and other facilities for the Dolphin Force in Lahore to improve patrolling. For Rawalpindi Division, she told all regional police officers to hold weekly meetings to review crimes of every category and report on the performance of district police officers. She also praised the RMC police force, which handles crowds, and ordered its capacity to be built up further. Families of police officers who lost their lives on duty are to receive lifetime salaries and financial packages, she said.
Crime figures presented at the meeting
The Inspector General of Police Punjab briefed the meeting and said the province had seen a declining trend in crime. According to the briefing, crime in Lahore fell by 41 per cent, while the Dera Ghazi Khan Region recorded a 16 per cent reduction. The largest regional drop cited was 67 per cent in the Gujranwala Region, followed by 58 per cent in the Gujrat Region and 52 per cent in the Bahawalpur Region.
The briefing also gave district-level figures. Multan district was cited at a 49 per cent decline and Rawalpindi at 42 per cent, while Rahim Yar Khan district fell by 50 per cent. These are police figures presented at the meeting, and they were not independently checked in the reporting available. The meeting was also told that the mobile police station project had provided 9,702 services to citizens.
What happens next
The four-week period is the time frame the chief minister set for police to show results on law and order. Officers in charge of districts will be reviewed against that deadline, and regional police officers are now required to report weekly on crime. Whether the officers named in the warning are removed will depend on how conditions change in the coming weeks.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Punjab ki chief minister Maryam Nawaz ne police ko chaar hafte diye hain ke amn-o-amaan behtar karein, khaaskar khawateen aur bachon ke khilaf jurm par. Agar behtari nahi hoti to mutalliqa officers ko hataya ja sakta hai. Police ke mutabiq Lahore mein jurm mein 41 fisadi kami aayi hai. Iska matlab hai ke sadkon par overspeeding aur mohallon mein patrolling par sakhti ho sakti hai.
