Following the unceremonious dismissal of Mohammad Ali Nekokara, the police officer who refused to use force against demonstrators on Constitution Avenue during anti-government protests, several other officials have also come forward in defence of the former Islamabad senior superintendent of police (SSP).

The episode has also given one such officer the courage to come forward with his own story of nepotism within the government that eventually cost him his job.

“I’m disappointed by Mr Nekokara’s dismissal. He did the right thing by not using force and his actions were in accordance with law. If not using force is a crime, then I should have been terminated from service. But instead, I was praised by the Punjab government,” a former SP, who did not wish to be named, told Dawn.

Currently on educational leave, the officer told Dawn that in 2009, when Governor Rule was enforced in Punjab, he had been directed to arrest over 500 PML-N activists who were taking part in the long march for the restoration of the judiciary.

“When I refused, I was removed from my position by the ruling PPP. However, as soon as the PML-N government was restored in Punjab, a top official called me to his office and personally appreciated my actions. He even offered me a posting of my choice,” the officer said.

A few years later, when this SP was posted in Rawalpindi, he picked up two PML-N men who were involved in the murder of an innocent man.

“There was a great deal of political pressure on me, but I resisted and concluded the investigation to the best of my abilities, which caused me to fall out of favour with the ruling party in the province.”

Some time later, the SP had an influential political figure booked for assaulting a traffic warden.

“The figure was very close to the rulers of the province and, because I refused to buckle under pressure, I was immediately made an ‘officer on special duty’ or OSD, by the same party that had once praised his services.”

“If petty strongmen can control the fate of senior police officers, what hope does society have against such characters,” the officer lamented.

Dawn’s ‘Eye-Witness Account’ segment features accounts of individuals who have experienced adversity or have been affected by a miscarriage of justice. All accounts are verified as far as possible by Dawn’s editorial team. Readers are encouraged to send in accounts of similar incidents that may have befallen them, so that attention can be called to such problems and they can be addressed with due debate in the public eye. Readers can send their accounts to re.isb@dawn.com.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2015

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