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Police Admit 'Criminal Negligence' in Chakwal Girl Shooting, Vow Transparency
🇵🇰 Pakistan /Crime & Justice

Police Admit 'Criminal Negligence' in Chakwal Girl Shooting, Vow Transparency

From Dawn · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • Punjab police and the Crime Control Department (CCD) admitted fault in the fatal shooting of a nine-year-old girl in Chakwal.
  • The incident, where the girl's car was mistaken for robbers', is being called "criminal negligence" due to the official's lack of training.
  • Authorities assured a transparent investigation and vowed to hold those responsible accountable, with a court challan expected within a week.

Punjab police and the Crime Control Department (CCD) have acknowledged a "mistake" and "criminal negligence" in the shooting death of a nine-year-old girl in Chakwal, assuring the public that the incident will not be covered up. The girl, Hania, was killed and her father and brother injured when CCD officials fired on their car, mistaking it for that of robbers.

deeply tragic

— Abdul KarimPunjab Inspector General of Police Abdul Karim described the shooting incident.

Addressing a press conference, Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abdul Karim described the event as "deeply tragic" and promised a thorough investigation to bring those responsible to justice. "No institution can earn public trust without acknowledging its mistakes," Karim stated, emphasizing that the investigation would proceed independently.

No institution can earn public trust without acknowledging its mistakes and assured that the investigation would proceed independently.

— Abdul KarimThe IGP emphasized the importance of accountability and transparency in the investigation.

CCD Additional Inspector General Sohail Zafar Chattha highlighted the importance of public trust and admitted the incident caused embarrassment. "Now, it is the right time to learn from this criminal negligence and rectify the blunders of the individuals in CCD to prevent such incidents in the future," Chattha said. Both officials pointed to the CCD official's lack of training as a contributing factor to his failure to assess the situation correctly, leading to a "huge blunder." Plans are underway to improve training and capacity-building within the department.

Now, it is the right time to learn from this criminal negligence and rectify the blunders of the individuals in CCD to prevent such incidents in the future.

— Sohail Zafar ChatthaCCD Additional Inspector General Sohail Zafar Chattha spoke about learning from the incident.

The press conference followed a demand for a "transparent" investigation from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who expressed his condolences. Chattha confirmed that the arrested personnel's challan would be completed within a week for court proceedings, making it clear that the officer involved would not receive sympathy from the police.

We will not defend this criminal negligence in any circumstances.

— Sohail Zafar ChatthaChattha reiterated the department's stance on not defending the actions of the official involved.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dawn in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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