At least two individuals lost their lives and six others sustained injuries during eight separate alleged police encounters across Faisalabad within a 24-hour timeframe. Police reports indicate that in each case, armed suspects engaged officers, resulting in retaliatory gunfire.
The first incident involved Abid Yousaf Jat, a suspect wanted for a double murder linked to a property dispute. He was reportedly killed during an operation in the Thikriwala area when his accomplices attacked a police van in an attempt to free him, leading to an exchange of fire in which he was fatally wounded.
In another case in Nishatabad, police said three suspects on a motorcycle opened fire at a checkpoint. One of the suspects, identified as a wanted murder accused, was injured and taken to hospital for treatment.
Additional alleged encounters took place in Dijkot, Batala Colony, Peoples Colony, Chak Jhumra, Razaabad, and Roshanwala police jurisdictions. Police stated that suspects involved in robbery or drug offenses either fled or were wounded during retaliatory firing. In many instances, injured suspects were reportedly hit by bullets fired by their fleeing accomplices.
One suspect was killed in Batala Colony during an operation targeting alleged drug traffickers, while six others were injured in separate incidents and hospitalized.
All these encounters followed a similar pattern in police accounts, describing ambushes on law enforcement teams, exchanges of gunfire, and suspects being found injured afterward.
Human rights groups have repeatedly raised concerns about a surge in staged encounters in Punjab. Earlier this year, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) released a fact-finding report documenting hundreds of alleged encounters led by the Counter Crime Department (CCD) over eight months, resulting in over 900 deaths and calling for judicial investigations into these operations.
Meanwhile, police maintain that their actions comply with legal standards and are responses to armed resistance from criminal gangs. These recent incidents have not been independently verified.
