The robbers joked that they had “advanced weaponry.”
The Punjab AIG claims that US-armed bandits received training in India.
Bandits in the Kacha [riverine] parts of Punjab had access to American-made weaponry and were trained in their use in India, according to information presented to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Privileges on Friday in ISLAMABAD.
The committee, led by Rana Qasim Noon, gathered here to hear an update on the ongoing operation to clear the Kacha area of criminals from the Punjab police and other officials.
The committee has ordered the interior secretary and the defense production secretary to equip the Punjab police with military-grade firearms and other supplies to help them combat the outlaws.
The committee was briefed on the operation by Punjab Police AIG Rao Munir. AIG Munir informed the committee that since the operation against the bandits began on April 9, more than 58,000 acres of land have been cleared.
Rana Noon questioned the officer about rumors that powerful persons from outside the area had purchased inexpensive land in the Kacha region. AIG Munir verified that such activity had been reported.
Police and security forces are cracking down on criminal enclaves in the Kacha region along the Indus River in the southern districts of Punjab. The AIG said “full planning” had gone into the operation, resulting in few casualties among law enforcement.
Rao Munir informed the committee, “Roughly 4,500 police personnel are participating in the operation.” He further mentioned that 26 offenders had turned themselves in during the operation and that one police officer had been killed.
According to the AIG, the crooks were able to obtain weaponry abandoned by American troops in Afghanistan. They’re using a thermal targeting technology to pick off our men from as far as two kilometers away. The instruction they received was in India, he said.
District Police Officer (DPO) Rizwan Gondal of Rahim Yar Khan told the committee, “the ground reality is that the bandits have better weapons than us.” He stressed the importance of providing cops with military-grade firearms.
The thugs are armed with mortars, RPGs, and anti-aircraft guns. “They have weapons that can blow up an armored vehicle,” DPO Gondal told the committee.
Noon ordered the defense production minister and the interior minister to arm the Punjab Police with military equipment so that they could deal with outlaws in the Kacha area.
The police told the committee that they have not received any funding for the purchase of APCs in over a year. A police official also noted that “it would help us in the ongoing operation” if the police were able to obtain the APCs.
The Rajanpur DPO provided a lengthy briefing on infrastructure difficulties in the Kacha regions. When it rains, it’s impossible to get there. Two bridges and certain roads will be built per our request to the chief secretary,” he said.
By contrast, “if roads and bridges are built, it will become difficult for dacoits to stay in the area,” he continued. A spokesperson for the chief secretary of Punjab stated that plans to construct 20 roads, 40 pickets, and 4 base camps in the region were now being considered.
Syed Sami Gilani, a member of the committee, brought up the topic of the Fourth Schedule at the meeting. This is a list of individuals who are banned by the province Home Department in accordance with the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
According to Gilani, people have been placed on the Fourth Schedule, making their life miserable, for the past 15 years. He argued that the names of those who had been exonerated should be deleted from the Fourth Schedule.
An official from the government of Punjab informed the committee that recent years’ regulations related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) imposed significant constraints on the Fourth Schedule.
In other words, “relief is being provided to the people now,” the police officer remarked. A person’s name can be removed from the Fourth Schedule “if they apply in accordance with the procedure and are cleared by the district intelligence committees,” he said.
Another member of the committee, Chaudhry Ashraf, brought up the matter of his wrongful detention. The former head of the Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) responded that the arrest was made without first getting approval from the speaker of the National Assembly.
Officials responsible for the detention of Chaudhry Ashraf will face consequences, he warned. The chair noted that all of the Punjab anti-corruption authorities involved in the detention of Chaudhry Ashraf should attend the conference.
