In the quiet city of Sargodha, Punjab, a harrowing tale unfolded that exposes the rotten underbelly of Pakistan’s law enforcement system. A woman, driven to the brink by relentless police highhandedness, ended her life in a gruesome act of despair. Before consuming poison that led to her agonizing death, she recorded a video message—a final testament to her suffering.
In the grainy footage, shared widely on social media, she tearfully alleged that local police demanded 5 tola of gold and 2.5 million rupees in cash to pursue justice in her case. She had been knocking on the doors of senior police officials for months, pleading for help against an unspecified wrong done to her family. But her cries fell on deaf ears, met only with indifference and extortion demands.
“I cannot live this miserable life anymore,” she whispered, her voice breaking, before the screen went black. Her body was discovered hours later, convulsing in pain, a symbol of the ultimate price paid by the powerless in a system rigged against them.
This incident is not an isolated tragedy but a grim reflection of Pakistan’s pervasive “police terrorism,” as critics aptly term it. Daily stories of police brutality and corruption flood the press, yet many more go unreported, buried under threats or fear of reprisal. According to Transparency International Pakistan’s National Corruption Perception Survey 2025, 24% of respondents viewed the police as the most corrupt government department, with Punjab leading at 34%.
International reports echo this damning verdict. The Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International ranks Pakistan 135th out of 180 countries, highlighting how police corruption erodes public trust and fuels societal decay.
GAN Integrity’s country risk report notes that Pakistan’s police suffer from chronic corruption, poor training, and impunity, with three out of four citizens believing most officers are corrupt.
No simple, honest person dares enter a police station; the treatment there is often disgusting—verbal abuse, physical torture, and blatant demands for bribes are commonplace. Yet, this same force bows obsequiously before the powerful. Landlords, politicians, and elites receive kid-glove treatment, while the poor are harassed and exploited. In Punjab, under prolonged PML-N rule spanning nearly two decades, police corruption has thrived amid favoritism and lack of accountability.
This double standard is a key reason Pakistan struggles to progress: a corrupt police force stifles justice, deters investment, and perpetuates inequality. The malaise extends even to the capital, Islamabad, where highhandedness persists unabated. Sectors like G-12, known as Mehra Abadi, have become notorious “no-go areas” where police fear to tread.
Recently, the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency busted an ATM fraud gang operating from this sector, arresting a woman ringleader and accomplices who preyed on unsuspecting citizens at busy booths. G-12 is also a hub for drug peddling, with suppliers targeting nearby schools and colleges, darkening the futures of young children.
Reports from 2018-2019 indicate that areas like G-12, G-7, and G-8 are infamous for drug sales, contributing to an alarming 50% drug use rate among students in Islamabad’s institutions.
Despite anti-drug campaigns, the police’s reluctance to enter these zones allows criminals to flourish, preying on the vulnerable. Why does this continue? The current police system suits those in power. Rooted in the colonial-era Police Act of 1861, it prioritizes control over service. Reforms, promised in over 21 reports since independence, remain unimplemented.
Politicians and elites benefit from a pliable force that suppresses dissent and protects their interests. Consequently, the poor suffer most—extorted, beaten, or driven to suicide like the woman in Sargodha. Her death is a wake-up call. Pakistan cannot afford more such gruesome tales. True progress demands police reform: independent oversight, better training, and zero tolerance for corruption. Until then, the cycle of misery will persist, claiming more lives in the shadows of unchecked power.
