September 30, 2025
By Aitzaz Ibrahim
LAHORE
Over the past three days, the Crime Control Department (CCD) has reported 12 suspects killed in alleged encounters across Punjab. The CCD claims the deceased, accused of serious crimes, were fatally shot by their own accomplices during operations.
The series of what the police claim to be encounters, between the CCD and suspects of various crimes, has been ongoing since some time across Punjab. The latest incident occurred today in Sheikhupura’s tehsil Muridke, where a gun battle took place between CCD personnel and dacoits.
According to reports, the dacoits had set up a checkpoint on Narowal Road and were looting passers-by, when the CCD team arrived at the scene. As soon as they spotted the law enforcement personnel, the suspects opened indiscriminate fire. In retaliatory firing by the CCD, five dacoits were killed on the spot. According to the CCD, the slain suspects were involved in the killing of a woman named Mehwish Begum, a resident of Lahore Cantonment, who was shot dead during a robbery two days earlier.
Earlier, on September 29, an alleged encounter occurred between CCD teams and dacoits in the outskirts of Kot Radha Kishan. According to police, two dacoits were killed in the exchange of fire while two police personnel sustained injuries. Police added that the slain suspects were the same individuals who had allegedly subjected a woman to sexual assault in front of her husband during a house robbery a few days ago.
On the same day, September 29, in the Gujrat areas of Lange village and Kunjah, two separate operations were carried out where CCD personnel exchanged fire with suspects, resulting in the deaths of two more dacoits.
On September 28, in Lahore’s Bhatta Pur area, the CCD conducted a raid to arrest suspects. According to police, the suspects opened fire upon spotting the law enforcement party, which was met with retaliatory gunfire from the police. During the crossfire, three suspects were injured by the firing of their own accomplices and later succumbed to their injuries while being shifted to the hospital. Police confirmed the identities of the deceased as Samson, Zahid, and Waqas.
Thus, from September 28 to September 30, a total of twelve dacoits were killed in various alleged encounters.
‘No killings are extrajudicial’: Spokesperson
CCD spokesperson Abdul Waheed rejected the perception that the department was created to carry out extrajudicial killings of suspects.
“When encounters occur, our personnel also come under fire. These criminals do not welcome us with flowers, they shoot at us the moment they see us,” he said simply.
When asked why the CCD does not present suspects before courts, the spokesperson claimed that nearly 1,600 proclaimed offenders had already been arrested and produced before courts, where their trials were ongoing.
“A large-scale operation against criminal elements is underway throughout Punjab. During these operations, if a few individuals are killed, it accounts for not even one percent of our overall activities,” he said. “Our duty is to pursue proclaimed offenders and killers. If anyone surrenders, we present them in court, but if they open fire on us, what are we supposed to do?”
On the other hand, human rights lawyer Asad Jamal raised questions regarding the CCD’s alleged encounters. Speaking to Voicepk, he said that under the law, glorifying acts that spread fear in society is a crime, yet state institutions themselves are engaging in this practice. He alleged that the CCD was in fact “glorifying” extrajudicial killings.
Jamal further stated that under Pakistan’s constitution and law, if a suspect dies in police custody or during an encounter, an inquiry through a magistrate is mandatory. He questioned, “In all the cases where CCD suspects have been killed in encounters so far, has any inquiry ever been conducted?”
He added that the state appears to have adopted a policy of bypassing constitutional and legal procedures and carrying out open killings of suspects. According to him, “If the state declares the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) a terrorist organization and we accept that, then the state must also explain what exactly the CCD is.”