Revamping Law Enforcing Agencies In Balochistan
By Siddiq Baluch
The Balochistan Government took a right decision by separating Balochistan Levies and Balochistan Constabulary from regular police. The previous
Government decision to merge both the law enforcing agencies into the Police force was based on bias and contempt towards the indigenous institutions of
Balochistan. Basically, the decisions were politically motivated to harm the indigenous institutions.
It is strange that the Head of State of Pakistan was not aware about the fact that Balochistan Levies is State Force and not the servants of tribal chieftains as
he said on many occasions. Now three parallel institutions for law enforcing will remain available to the Balochistan Government for maintenance of public
order. The command and control of Balochistan Levies and the Balochistan Constabulary was made separate as both the institutions remained underdog of
the police command, mostly aliens from other provinces. Strangely, the police officers came for a few year of mandatory posting in Balochistan had become
experts and they normally misled the high ups, particularly the naïve rulers had no base in the Pakistani society.
Once the BC and Levies are brought out of the control of the Police, the Government had also made a substantial allocation of funds for development of both
the Levies and BC. However, the Police will continue to get the lion’s share of over Rs 5.5 billions during the next fiscal year, it is followed by Balochistan
Levies receiving Rs 3.7 billion. Interestingly, the Provincial Government had allocated Rs 1.3 billions for the Balochistan Levies for the current fiscal year. At
the end of the fiscal year, it shocked every one that the Balochistan Levies received merely Rs 381 millions, more than one billion less, and the revised
Budget documents confirmed.
It showed the deep contempt from the alien police command towards the indigenous force which in fact is community police by all standards. The
Government took a right decision in allocating 1500 new jobs in Balochistan Levies to revamp the force and meet its manpower requirement. Secondly, the
Levies personnel will also get salary equal to the policemen and it will not be a force of second class citizens of Pakistan as the previous Government
considered.
We have suggested that ASPs in Grade 17 should be posted as Station House Officer of all the hundreds of Levies Stations all over Balochistan as they will
monitor law and order problems for 95 per cent territory. The ASPs should be selected through the Public Service Commission or through competitive
examination and should be from the local community and not outsider to retain the concept of community police. Police with huge perks and privilege for the
high command will continue get a huge allocation for maintenance of public order in major human settlements, including Quetta.
It is also good news in the Provincial Budget that the Government had regularized the services of 6000 personnel of the Balochistan Constabulary. The force
will be revamped with its own command structure, separate from the police force. It should be brought at par with the Para-military forces of Pakistan
matching the capabilities of the Frontier Corps.
Primarily, the Balochistan Government will have to develop its own system of law enforcement and rely less on the Federal forces for maintenance of public
order. In case of crisis, the Government can redeploy the FC, Balochistan on defending international frontiers as it was done in 1965, 1971 and again in
2002, eye-ball-to-eye ball situation with India on the borders. The Government had allocated Rs 1.92 billion for the Balochistan Constabulary for the next
fiscal year and hopefully it will be spent on better training and equipment of the force besides providing the personnel salary equal to the police force.
For the first time, the Balochistan Government had made a separate allocation of Rs 1.92 billions for the Balochistan Constabulary. The BC can be used as
a reserved police force, a special contingent to deal with breakdown of law and order at a massive scale performing duties matching the FC. During the
recent experience, the Provincial Government had learnt a number of lessons to depend on the indigenous force for maintenance of public order in a more
decent way and without inflicting insults to the people in odd situation. The people of Balochistan will definitely provide the sense of deep ownership to all the
indigenous institutions assigned the job of maintaining law and order.
(The write is a veteran Quetta-based journalist with five-decade journalistic experience of covering Balochistan. He is currently the editor-in-chief of Daily
Balochistan Express and Daily Azadi (Urdu), Quetta: dailyazadi@gmail.com. To read previous articles by the same writer, click here)
http://thebalochhal.com/2010/06/revamping-law-enforcing-agencies-in-balochistan/
By Siddiq Baluch
The Balochistan Government took a right decision by separating Balochistan Levies and Balochistan Constabulary from regular police. The previous
Government decision to merge both the law enforcing agencies into the Police force was based on bias and contempt towards the indigenous institutions of
Balochistan. Basically, the decisions were politically motivated to harm the indigenous institutions.
It is strange that the Head of State of Pakistan was not aware about the fact that Balochistan Levies is State Force and not the servants of tribal chieftains as
he said on many occasions. Now three parallel institutions for law enforcing will remain available to the Balochistan Government for maintenance of public
order. The command and control of Balochistan Levies and the Balochistan Constabulary was made separate as both the institutions remained underdog of
the police command, mostly aliens from other provinces. Strangely, the police officers came for a few year of mandatory posting in Balochistan had become
experts and they normally misled the high ups, particularly the naïve rulers had no base in the Pakistani society.
Once the BC and Levies are brought out of the control of the Police, the Government had also made a substantial allocation of funds for development of both
the Levies and BC. However, the Police will continue to get the lion’s share of over Rs 5.5 billions during the next fiscal year, it is followed by Balochistan
Levies receiving Rs 3.7 billion. Interestingly, the Provincial Government had allocated Rs 1.3 billions for the Balochistan Levies for the current fiscal year. At
the end of the fiscal year, it shocked every one that the Balochistan Levies received merely Rs 381 millions, more than one billion less, and the revised
Budget documents confirmed.
It showed the deep contempt from the alien police command towards the indigenous force which in fact is community police by all standards. The
Government took a right decision in allocating 1500 new jobs in Balochistan Levies to revamp the force and meet its manpower requirement. Secondly, the
Levies personnel will also get salary equal to the policemen and it will not be a force of second class citizens of Pakistan as the previous Government
considered.
We have suggested that ASPs in Grade 17 should be posted as Station House Officer of all the hundreds of Levies Stations all over Balochistan as they will
monitor law and order problems for 95 per cent territory. The ASPs should be selected through the Public Service Commission or through competitive
examination and should be from the local community and not outsider to retain the concept of community police. Police with huge perks and privilege for the
high command will continue get a huge allocation for maintenance of public order in major human settlements, including Quetta.
It is also good news in the Provincial Budget that the Government had regularized the services of 6000 personnel of the Balochistan Constabulary. The force
will be revamped with its own command structure, separate from the police force. It should be brought at par with the Para-military forces of Pakistan
matching the capabilities of the Frontier Corps.
Primarily, the Balochistan Government will have to develop its own system of law enforcement and rely less on the Federal forces for maintenance of public
order. In case of crisis, the Government can redeploy the FC, Balochistan on defending international frontiers as it was done in 1965, 1971 and again in
2002, eye-ball-to-eye ball situation with India on the borders. The Government had allocated Rs 1.92 billion for the Balochistan Constabulary for the next
fiscal year and hopefully it will be spent on better training and equipment of the force besides providing the personnel salary equal to the police force.
For the first time, the Balochistan Government had made a separate allocation of Rs 1.92 billions for the Balochistan Constabulary. The BC can be used as
a reserved police force, a special contingent to deal with breakdown of law and order at a massive scale performing duties matching the FC. During the
recent experience, the Provincial Government had learnt a number of lessons to depend on the indigenous force for maintenance of public order in a more
decent way and without inflicting insults to the people in odd situation. The people of Balochistan will definitely provide the sense of deep ownership to all the
indigenous institutions assigned the job of maintaining law and order.
(The write is a veteran Quetta-based journalist with five-decade journalistic experience of covering Balochistan. He is currently the editor-in-chief of Daily
Balochistan Express and Daily Azadi (Urdu), Quetta: dailyazadi@gmail.com. To read previous articles by the same writer, click here)
http://thebalochhal.com/2010/06/revamping-law-enforcing-agencies-in-balochistan/
