A statement issued by the Sindh Police said that the incident that took place on the night between October 18 and 19 caused heartache and unrest for the police.
Following this incident, IG Sindh decided to go on leave, which was followed by all other senior officers against the ridicule of Sindh Police. It was not a collective decision but was made by the officers individually.
The unfortunate incident that occurred on the night of 18/19 October caused great heartache and resentment within all ranks of Sindh Police.
— Sindh Police (@sindhpolicedmc) October 20, 2020
The statement said that the Sindh Police welcomes the orders of the Army Chief to take notice of the incident and expressed its gratitude to the Army Chief for taking note of the incident.
The statement thanked Chairman PP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah for visiting the IG House.
The statement further said that Sindh Police is an organized force that believes in institutional harmony and a sense of responsibility in national institutions to serve the people of the province. In view of this, in the wider national interest, IG Sindh has postponed the decision to go on leave for the next ten days till the outcome of the investigation and has also ordered the senior officers to postpone the decision to go on leave. ۔
It may be recalled that after the arrest of PML-N leader Captain (retd) Safdar on the issue of alleged desecration of Mazar-e-Quaid in Karachi, the top leadership of Sindh Police has 'morale down' in the background of media reports on IG Sindh. And several police officers had applied for leave.
In this context, Additional IG of Special Branch Imran Yaqub had sought two months leave while IG Sindh was also reported to be on leave for two weeks.
A delegation of PML-N leaders led by Maryam Nawaz Sharif, who had come to attend a meeting of the Pakistan Democratic Movement at Jinnah Garden in Karachi on Sunday, had visited Mazar-e-Quaid. Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar also chanted slogans.
Based on the incident, PTI leaders launched a campaign on social media and also submitted an application to register an FIR at the concerned police station.
According to the Sindh Chief Minister, the police were allegedly put under pressure to register the FIR.
Former Sindh Governor Muhammad Zubair had told the media after the arrest of Captain Safdar that Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah had told him that Rangers had allegedly abducted IG Sindh at 4 am to register an FIR. To forcibly issue arrest warrants for Captain Safdar
Since the statement, questions have been raised about the performance of the Sindh police and the role of the Sindh government, but no response has been forthcoming, adding to the pressure on police officers.
On Tuesday, the Sindh chief minister held a press conference in which he was expected to explain the statement attributed to him, but did not say whether the Sindh government should inquire into the matter. "And they can't affect the inquiry by making a statement."
Police sources said that the top police officers have been in a state of panic for the past two days and the manner in which the police have been discredited in the media has lowered the morale of the force.
The reaction of senior police officers came after the Sindh Chief Minister refused to explain the matter.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said in a press conference in Karachi on Tuesday that after the arrest of retired Captain Safdar, senior officers of Sindh Police went on leave and it has become a question of honor of police officers.
"The police should work independently. If there is no political interference, the interference of others will not be tolerated," he said.
Additional IG Imran Yaqub, head of the special branch of the Sindh police, submitted a two-month leave application, which clearly stated that the manner in which the police department had been ridiculed in recent days was regrettable after which he resumed his duties. They should be sent on a two-month leave so that they can get out of this pressure.
On the other hand, police sources are also saying that IG Sindh Mushtaq Mehr himself is going on a two-week leave.
