LAHORE, May 12: IGP Shaukat Javed heard 60 complainants on Monday and, as usual, marked all applications to lower staff for further action.

The complaints were regarding arrest of outlaws, wrong investigation, harbouring criminals and illegal occupation on lands. The IG has so far heard 428 complainants in eight open courts since April 22.

A large number of complainants turn up in the open courts with a hope that their problems will be redressed but, to their dismay, their applications are again sent to the same police officers against whom they have grievances.

On the other hand, ‘ineffective vigilance and poor monitoring’ by the staff who handle complaints at a cell set up at the office of the personal staff officer to the IG, multiply the sufferings of complainants.

It is not practically possible for the staff consisting of 10 personnel to monitor the pace of investigation of thousands of cases in 35 districts of Punjab.

A senior police officer said there was a need to strengthen the vigilance cell of the CPO at each district.

A source in CPO office told Dawn the complaint cell, which was already receiving plaints from citizens from all parts of the province on a daily basis, was at present handling applications filed at the open courts and that carried IG’s comments.

IG Shaukat Javed told Dawn it was too early to examine that how many complaints had been redressed upon his directives so far. Their results, he said, would be reviewed after every month. He said he had set up a complaint cell headed by an SP in his office which would categorise the nature of complaints district-wise through a computer software, analyse the complaints, pass his directives to the officers concerned and report him after a month.

The report would include non-compliance of orders, genuine and wrong applications, faulty investigation and non-compliance of punishment to the police officials.