Orders Okara DPO to register FIR against concerned officials and submit compliance report in 15 days
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday ordered registration of a criminal case against officials of the Crime Control Department (CCD) for the alleged illegal detention of a citizen, ruling that video evidence contradicted the department’s account of the incident.
Justice Amjad Rafiq issued the written order while hearing a petition filed by Maqsooda Bibi, directing the Okara District Police Officer (DPO) to register a first information report (FIR) against the officials concerned and submit a compliance report within 15 days.
According to the written order, the petitioner stated that Gulfam Ali was released on June 27, but was immediately detained outside the prison by plainclothes individuals.
Read: Fatal case due to CCD shooting deepens
During the proceedings, the court examined the CCTV footage of the incident submitted by the Superintendent of Lahore District Jail and other evidence available on record.
Lahore Defense CCD inspector/in-charge Akhtar Ali told the judge that Gulfam had been arrested in connection with a criminal case registered in Okara on July 2; However, Justice Rafiq observed that the CCD’s version was contradicted by the video evidence before the court.
The judge held that submitting an incorrect report to the court and holding a citizen in illegal custody were cognizable offenses warranting criminal proceedings.
The court subsequently directed the Okara DPO to register an FIR against the officials concerned and submit a report after complying with the order.
On June 18, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), in a post on X, warned the Punjab government about increasing extrajudicial killings by the CCD in Punjab.
The organization noted that CCD “routinely” adopted the use of lethal force as a crime control tactic.
HRCP notes with alarm that extrajudicial killings have continued in Punjab even though the organization had warned the Punjab government in an earlier report that @CCD_Punjab appeared to be routinely adopting the use of lethal force as a tactic to “control” crime. Since…
– Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (@HRCP87) June 18, 2026
“Since the CCD was formed in April 2025, the HRCP has documented 808 police ‘encounters’ in which at least 1,100 suspects have been killed,” the publication stressed, adding: “The fact that this normalization of lethal force outside of due process has directly resulted in the death of a nine-year-old boy should be a wake-up call for the Punjab government.”
The HRCP regretted that while the CCD recognized the incident as a “violation” of departmental rules, it could not be treated as an isolated operational failure, nor could internal accountability be substituted for independent oversight.
