FAISALABAD: Regional Police Officer Ghulam Mohammad Dogar on Monday suspended from service the station house officer (SHO) and a sub-inspector of the Factory Area police station following the death of a motorcyclist because of string of a stray kite.

The action against the SHO and the sub-inspector was taken for failing to check kite-flying in the area under their jurisdiction, resulting in the death of a motorcyclist.

Despite a government ban on kite-flying the festival of Basant was celebrated in Faisalabad on large scale a couple of days ago during which people indulged in the traditional sport, resulting in some casualties.

In Partap Nagar area of the city, a woman was killed when a stray bullet allegedly fired by some revelers hit her.

Similarly, a man was killed in Rehmania Town after his throat was allegedly slit by the string of a stray kite.

The celebration of Basant festival in the city despite a ban on kite-flying and the resulting casualties have brought police, especially the SHOs of various police stations under immense pressure of their seniors to control the dangerous sport.

Because of this pressure, the police seem to be panicked, venting their ire on citizens.

The situation was manifested in a video clip that recently vent viral, showing two policemen thrashing an eight-year-old boy after dragging him out of his house, for flying a kite in the limits of Gulberg police station.

The footage shows two policemen, one of them believed to be the SHO of the Gulberg police, entering a house and later coming out holding the minor boy from his shirt’s collar. They are followed by another policeman who was carrying a few kites. As soon as they stepped out of the house, the policemen started thrashing the minor boy publicly.

Ahsan Nazir, a local trader, reacting to the torture incident said that police instead of taking action against the kite sellers and manufacturers were going after minors and teenagers indulging in the sport, which was not fair.

Talking to Dawn, a policeman said it was not possible for the police to keep an eye on the roof of each house in the city to check kite-flying, adding that it was also the responsibility of the parents to stop their children from indulging in the dangerous sport.

He said scores of banners had been displayed allover the city -- at busy intersections, markets and even in streets -- warning the people against indulging in kite-flying, but nobody bothered.

He regretted that many parents encouraged their children to indulge in the banned sport by giving them money to buy kites and string and enjoy Basant.

He said the police had also approached the clerics of the mosques for making announcements against the kite-flying, but despite such measures people go for it.

A student residing in Mansoorabad locality of the city said, seeking anonymity, that policemen often visited some kite manufacturers in the area, but returned without any action after their palms were greased.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2019He alleged that no crackdown was being launched on manufacturers because they bribe police.