The Lawless Lawmen!

Asem Mustafa Awan

These are a few images that show how the law of the land has deteriorated over time. These very officials are supposed to uphold the law but they act to the contrary.

It has been days since the police, with great dedication, have been placing fines on motorcyclists who were not wearing helmets. The amount gathered has not been divulged but these lawmen in the picture are committing blatant violations in broad daylight.

The common public is filled with resentment as to why they have to pay the fine while others are ‘sacred cows’ and go free. Helmets are for safety; there is no second opinion about it, but a commoner believes some bigwig in the country has the contract for importing helmets and that is the reason this is enforced. This has nothing to do with safety; people die each day on the road and those who crush them just leave as if nothing happened and are never caught.

The usual meetings and briefings for optics are later placed in the bin as more such minutes are gathered, as every day a new incident is around the corner about to happen.

The force, instead of building its capacity, performs the opposite and complicates the situation further.

People believe that there are different laws depending on social status. The ‘untouchables’— a term referring to people above the law—can get away with murder and nothing happens, while in the case of commoners, the law is applied with full ferocity.

This picture also shows how the institutions and state as a whole have collapsed in looking after their subjects, who have nurtured them with blood and are bleeding.

The video of a policeman whose expletives for the police chief have gone viral served as an eye-opener for commoners as to what type of people have come into the force and what attitude they bring to work.

What happened after is another story that, if it happened in any ‘civilized society, would be enough to put the entire department to shame.

The land of the pure has its own ups and downs, and has unheard tales that can make headlines at any time of the day.

The writer is a journalist based in Islamabad and writes on a wide range of issues.

Photo Credit: Sohail Shahzad