Crime, Fear, and the CCD: Is Punjab Safer or Just More Afraid?

By Saqlain Abid

Last February, when the Crime Control Department (CCD) was launched with great fanfare, many believed Punjab had entered a new era of policing. The institution quickly became the centerpiece of the provincial government’s law-and-order narrative, while its leadership was widely praised for its aggressive approach against criminals.

I remember debating the issue with a close friend who was convinced that the CCD would transform Punjab and drastically reduce crime. My argument was different. I believed that while such an institution might produce dramatic headlines, it would not solve the root causes of crime. If anything, I feared it could create new problems.

Months later, that same friend admitted that my concerns were not entirely misplaced. The question, therefore, is not whether the CCD has carried out operations. The real question is whether it has succeeded in making society safer or merely strengthened the perception of force.

Several questions remain unanswered.

Why was a separate institution established instead of implementing meaningful reforms within the Punjab Police? If police reforms were the objective, why not improve investigation standards, professional training, accountability, and public confidence instead of creating another enforcement body?

Can crime truly be eliminated through encounters and the use of lethal force? Can fear achieve what justice cannot? Can public trust ever be built on intimidation rather than confidence in the law?

Perhaps the most important question is whether the existence of such institutions unintentionally weakens the criminal justice system itself. If suspects are increasingly dealt with outside the courtroom, what message does that send about the role of investigation, prosecution, and the judiciary?

Many legal scholars argue that the law cannot physically exist everywhere. Its strength lies in creating institutions that enforce rules fairly and consistently. Once enforcement begins to operate outside legal boundaries, the credibility of the entire justice system comes into question.

Pakistan’s crime problem is far more complex than simply eliminating offenders. Crime is often rooted in unemployment, poverty, social inequality, drug abuse, poor education, family breakdown, and psychological distress. Addressing these factors requires long-term investment in education, technical skills, counseling, rehabilitation, and economic opportunity.

Thousands of young Pakistanis face hopelessness and uncertainty. Many can be diverted away from crime through vocational training, mental health support, and meaningful employment. Preventing crime has always been more sustainable than merely responding to it.

Equally concerning are allegations that some operations have resulted in abuses of power. Whether proven or not, every allegation deserves an impartial investigation. Accountability cannot be selective. If the state expects citizens to respect the law, its institutions must demonstrate that no individual is above it.

The principle is simple. If saving one innocent life is considered equivalent to saving all humanity, then taking the life of an innocent person represents a grave failure of justice. As Martin Luther King Jr. famously observed, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Public confidence also depends upon equality before the law. Ordinary citizens often question whether influential families, politically connected individuals, or powerful elites face the same treatment as those without influence. Justice cannot remain credible if its application appears unequal.

No society can build lasting peace if justice changes according to wealth, status, or political connections.

The way forward is not the abolition of law enforcement but its reform. Institutions such as the CCD must operate under strict legal oversight, independent accountability, and complete transparency. Extrajudicial practices should never become a substitute for due process.

More importantly, genuine reforms should focus on strengthening the Punjab Police through better investigations, improved forensic capacity, respectful public engagement, continuous psychological assessment of officers, and professional training that reduces the likelihood of excessive use of force.

The rule of law is not strengthened by fear alone. It is strengthened when crime is prevented, investigations are credible, courts are trusted, and every citizen—powerful or powerless—is treated equally before the law.

A state’s true strength is measured not by how many criminals it kills, but by how effectively it delivers justice within the boundaries of the law.