Law enforcement in Pakistan () is one of the three main components of the

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

system of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, alongside the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

and the

prisons A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are imprisoned under the authority of the state, usually as punishment for various cr ...

. The country has a mix of federal, provincial and territorial police forces with both general and specialised functions, but the senior ranks of all the provincial forces and most of the federal ones are manned by members of the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP). The PSP is one of the most prestigious part of the

Central Superior Services The Central Superior Services (CSS; or Civil Service) is a permanent elite civil service authority and the civil service that is responsible for running the bureaucratic operations and government secretariats and directorates of the Cabinet of ...

, Pakistan's main civil service organisation. Federal law enforcement agencies are generally overseen by the

Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...

of the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

, while provincial police forces are overseen by a department of the government of that province.

Overview

Federal Law Enforcement

Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation The Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation (DG I&I) () operates as a department under the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in Pakistan. While its core function is to serve as the intelligence wing of the FBR, it is actively engaged i ...

* National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency *

National Highways and Motorway Police The National Highways & Motorway Police (), abbreviated NHMP, is a police force in Pakistan that is responsible for enforcement of traffic and safety laws, security and recovery on Pakistan's National Highways and Motorway network. NHMP use SU ...

National Counter Terrorism Authority The National Counter Terrorism Authority (), commonly called NACTA, is a Pakistani internal security organization responsible for making counter terrorism and counter extremism policies and strategies. It also develops action plans against terror ...

* Animal Quarantine Department * Department of Plant Protection *

Federal Investigation Agency The Federal Investigation Agency (; reporting name: FIA) is a border control, criminal investigation, counter-intelligence and security agency under the control of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan, tasked with investigative jurisdiction on u ...

Pakistan Railways Police The Pakistan Railways Police is a federal law enforcement agency in Pakistan that is responsible for maintaining law and order within the jurisdiction of Pakistan Railways. History The Pakistan Railways Police was founded according to the ''Paki ...

Financial Monitoring Unit The Financial Monitoring Unit (, abbreviated as FMU) is the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Pakistan established under the provisions of Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 (Previously Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance, 2007). It is an independen ...

Airports Security Force The Airports Security Force (ASF) () is a federal airport security force agency under the administrative control of the Defense Secretary of Pakistan, Secretary to the Government of Pakistan for Defense which is responsible for protecting the a ...

Anti-Narcotics Force The Anti-Narcotics Force (, reporting name: ''ANF'') is a federal executive bureau and a paramilitary force of the Government of Pakistan, tasked with combating the narcotics smuggling and use within Pakistan. ANF works under the umbrella of ...

Pakistan Customs Pakistan Customs () is one of the cadres of the Civil Services of Pakistan. It is staffed by officers from the Pakistan Customs Service (PCS) which is one of the premier occupational groups among Pakistan's civil services. Pakistan’s Federal ...

Training and Policy

National Academy for Prisons Administration National Academy for Prisons Administration (NAPA) formerly known as Central Jail Staff Training Institute (CJSTI) () is a Federal Government's training institute for prison staff of all four provinces of Pakistan. It operates under the Ministry of ...

* National Police Academy *

National Police Bureau National Police Bureau () is the premier police institution at the national level under Ministry of Interior, Pakistan. Police Order, 2002 further mandates the NPB to serve as a secretariat to the National Public Safety Commission (NPSC) and Nation ...

Police Forces

Islamabad Police Islamabad Capital Territory Police (), also known as Islamabad Police, is a police force formed in 1981 to police Islamabad Capital Territory, Pakistan under administrative control of the Chief Commissioner, ICT Administration, Islamabad Capital ...

Balochistan Police Balochistan Police or Baloch Police ( Baloch, Urdu: بلوچستان پولیس) is responsible for Policing urban Balochistan, Pakistan. Its strength is 150,000 as of 2023.The current Inspector General of Police, Balochistan is Moazzam Jah Ans ...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police (), formerly known as the Frontier Police, is the provincial law enforcement agency of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. History British colonial era In 1849, the land corresponding to modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhw ...

Gilgit-Baltistan Police The Gilgit-Baltistan Police (), formerly known as Northern Areas Police, is responsible for law enforcement in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. The mission of the GB Police is the prevention and detection of crime, maintenance of law and ...

Azad Kashmir Police The Azad Kashmir Police or Azad Jammu and Kashmir Police (AJKP) is responsible for law enforcement in the Azad Kashmir region administered by Pakistan. It is presently headed by Inspector-General of Police, Abdul Jabbar (PSP), and headquarter ...

Sindh Police The Sindh Police (Urdu: , ), is a law enforcement agency established in 1843 under a proclamation issued by Sir Charles James Napier, who became the conqueror of the State of Sindh by defeating the forces of the Talpur rulers at the Battle of Mi ...

* Punjab Police

Paramilitary forces

Provincial and territorial police

The four

provinces of Pakistan The administrative units of Pakistan comprise four provinces, one federal territory, and two territorial dispute, disputed territories: the provinces of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan, Pakistan, Baloch ...

(

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

and

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region o ...

) each have their own police force, organised to suit the challenges of that locality, with their own specialised and elite units. Each police force has a

Commissioner of Police A police commissioner is the head of a police department, responsible for overseeing its operations and ensuring the effective enforcement of laws and maintenance of public order. They develop and implement policies, manage budgets, and coordinate ...

appointed as Inspector-General who is a senior officer from the Police Service of Pakistan. Some provincial police forces are routinely supported by federal paramilitary units operating in that area. All provincial police forces contain

Counter Terrorism Department The Counter Terrorism Department (; CTD) formerly known as the Crime Investigation Department (CID), are crime scene investigation, interrogation, anti-terrorism, and intelligence bureaus of the provincial police services of Pakistan. The CT ...

and

Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...

. The traditional uniform of Pakistani provincial police officers is a black shirt with tan trousers. In 2017, police in Punjab transitioned to an olive green uniform, but reverted to the traditional uniform in 2019. In 2020, all provinces decided to adopt the uniform worn in Islamabad - light blue or white shirts with dark blue trousers.

Balochistan

* The

operates in 7 districts of

Balochistan province Balochistan (; ; , ) is a province of Pakistan. Located in the southwestern region of the country, Balochistan is the largest province of Pakistan by land area but is the least populated one. It is bordered by the Pakistani provinces of Khybe ...

. * The Balochistan Constabulary is a reserve police unit of the Balochistan Police. * The

Balochistan Levies Balochistan Levies is a paramilitary gendarmerie in the Pakistani province of Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan. It operates as one of two primary law enforcement agencies tasked with maintaining law and order in the province, along with Balochis ...

is a paramilitary police force operating in 23 of Balochistan's 30 districts.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

* The

is the main civilian police force in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. * The Reserve Frontier Police acts as the reserve unit of the KP Police. * The

Special Combat Unit Special Combat Unit (SCU) is a branch of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police trained as for counter-terrorism purposes capable of rapid deployment, it is operational in its jurisdiction of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan. The force can be deployed in any ...

is for counter-terrorism operations. *

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Levies The Pakistan Levies (Urdu: ), or Federal Levies, are provincial paramilitary forces (gendarmeries) in Pakistan, whose primary missions are law enforcement, assisting the civilian police (where co-located) in maintaining law and order, and condu ...

(11,739 personnel) are raised by provincial or local governments to provide additional security in their areas. They include: **

Dir Levies The Dir Levies is a paramilitary force in the Dir District of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It operates as the primary law enforcement agency tasked with maintaining law and order within the division. The force has its origins ba ...

Malakand Levies The Malakand Levies is a paramilitary force in the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Malakand Division. It operates as the primary law enforcement agency tasked with maintaining law and order within the division. The force has its origins ...

* The Levies and the Khasadar Forces have been absorbed into the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police or pensioned off.

Punjab

* The Punjab Police operates in the Punjab province. ** The Dolphin Force deals with street crime. ** The

Elite Police The Elite Police (), also known as the "Elite Police Force" or "Police Commandos", is a branch of the Punjab Police specializing in counter-terrorist operations and VIP security duties, as well as acting against serious crime and performing high ...

performs counter-terrorism operations. ** The Police Qaumi Razakars are a support force for the Punjab Police in their duties. * Punjab Highway Patrol * Punjab Prisons manage 43 prisons. Sindh_police_constable_2

Sindh

* The

operates in the

province. * The

Special Security Unit The Special Security Unit (SSU) is a specialized counterterrorism and security unit of the Sindh Police in Pakistan. It is a Karachi-based unit, with its operational jurisdiction extending throughout Sindh as a whole. It was established in 2010 ...

is a specialized counterterrorism and security unit, based in Karachi, with operational jurisdiction extending throughout Sindh. The SSU was established in 2010 in response to increased rates of terrorism.

Territories

Pakistan's capital has its own

and subordinates units such as Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP). The

operates in the semi-autonomous

Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir ( ), is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger ...

. The

operates in the semi-autonomous

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative units of Pakistan, administrative territory and consists of the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has b ...

region.

Police Service of Pakistan (PSP)

The Police Service of Pakistan (PSP) replaced the

Indian Imperial Police The Indian Imperial Police, referred to variously as the Indian Police or, by 1905, the Imperial Police, was part of the Indian Police Services, the uniform system of police administration in British India, as established by Government of India Ac ...

in 1948, a year after Pakistan became

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

from the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. The service commands and provides leadership to federal, provincial, and territorial police forces. Its officers are assigned to different districts, provinces and stations across Pakistan. Most of the country's highest profile law enforcement positions are staffed by members of the PSP, including Inspector Generals of provinces, the Director Generals of the Intelligence Bureau and

, and superintendents of the

Frontier Constabulary The Frontier Constabulary () is a federal paramilitary force of Pakistan under the control of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan, which is largely drawn from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, but operates in several districts of Pakistan. It is res ...

. Officers are recruited through an extremely competitive examination held once a year by the

Federal Public Service Commission The Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) () is a federal agency of Government of Pakistan that is responsible for recruiting civil servants and bureaucrats for Government of Pakistan. History The Public Service Commission was set up for ...

. Those selected then must undergo a six month training programme known as CTP at the

Civil Services Academy Situated in Lahore, Pakistan, the Civil Services Academy Lahore is an academy for the training of young bureaucrats who are commissioned by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) through a very competitive Central Superior Services exam, ...

(CSA) in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, and a further 18 months of specialised training occurs at the National Police Academy Islamabad. Primarily operated through the four provincial governments and the

Islamabad Capital Territory The Islamabad Capital Territory is a federal territory of Pakistan, centred around Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. It is located on the northern edge of the Pothohar Plateau, at the foot of the Margalla Hills, in the northwest of the ...

, each police service has a jurisdiction extending only within the relevant province or territory. The law enforcement agencies are also involved in providing first response to emergencies and other threats to

public safety Public security or public safety is the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety and security of the public from significant danger, injury, or property damage. It is often conducted by a state government to ensu ...

as well as protecting the infrastructure and maintaining order in the country. Apart from investigating crime scenes, criminal acts, suspected unlawful activities, and detention of suspected criminals pending judicial action, the law enforcement agencies (primarily police) also perform duties that include the service and enforcement of warrants, writs, and other orders of the courts.

Designations of PSP officers

References

{{Asia topic, Law enforcement in

Overview

Federal Law Enforcement

Training and Policy

Police Forces

Paramilitary forces

Provincial and territorial police

Balochistan

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Punjab

Sindh

Territories

Police Service of Pakistan (PSP)

Designations of PSP officers

See also

References