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Brainstorming at the top
The state of crime in the Punjab was very grave when I took over as IGP Punjab in 1991. There were frightening crimes of violence. The police, working under great pressures, was afraid of the Kalashnikov-carrying gangs of criminals. The government and the criminal justice administration were bewildered and perplexed. The officers, while always trying to avoid any risks to their jobs, had lost initiative or imagination to deal with the problems of crime and law and order.
I found the officers and ranks behaving like dumb driven cattle. Like their counterparts in other departments and institutions of the state, the po­licemen had been indoctrinated and traumatized by various martial law re­gimes into robotic submission and subservience. They had been conditioned to only receiving orders from the above and carrying them out blindly. The serious challenges of crime could not be met squarely without the willing participation of the entire rank and file. To inject vigour and spirit, it was necessary to change the whole approach to the problem.
One of the methods I employed effectively was to hold a series of con­ferences of Deputy Inspectors General of Police and other senior officers to discuss in depth the main issues and how to deal with them, in short as well as long term. The conferences were different in nature from the previous ones. I did not give any stereotype orders or threats of punishments. Anybody could do that as I had seen in many such meaningless conferences. I wanted my officers to apply their minds and come out with their best suggestions for solving the problems instead of merely obeying the orders of their superiors. I wanted this process to reach even the lowest levels of the force.
I made a start with the conferences of DIGs and senior SPs at the pro­vincial headquarters. These were followed by smaller ones at the range (divisional) headquarters where I would call at least half of the range DIGs, SPs of nearby districts and DSPs of the range along with relevant staff offi­cers of the Central Police Office, like DIG Crime Branch, and Director, R&D. Inspectors and selected Sub Inspectors would also participate in the discussions.
The provincial and other conferences were organized after brainstorming over many days to select subjects and issues. The officers would write papers on subjects of special interest to them. The agenda and the papers were circulated in advance so that the participants could come fully prepared. Committees were constituted to monitor preparations and to ensure meaningful outcome.
The preparation of agenda and other paper work was undertaken most efficiently and thoughtfully by Salman Qureshi, Additional IGP, Maj. Zia-ul-Hasan, Additional IGP, Special Branch, Khalid Latif, Director R&D, Sala­huddin Niazi, DIG Crime Branch, and M.A. Hameed, Director, Research, Special Branch. Ch. Ghulam Haider, SP Survey, Special Branch, and Dr Tariq Khokhar, ASP, arranged recording and publication of the conference proceedings in special issues of Muhafiz. Similar arrangements were made at the divisional level.
The conference at the divisional headquarters would be enlarged the next day and held in a playground or parade ground so that the constabulary could also participate and give their observations and suggestions. The DIG, SPs, DSPs and SHOs were asked to hold such meetings on the same pattern in their own areas of responsibility.
The proceedings were recorded and published in Urdu in the next issue of the monthly magazine of the range for the benefit of the entire force. The proceedings of the DIG conferences at provincial headquarters were published in Urdu in Muhafiz, the Punjab Police magazine, for distri­bution among all policemen and officers of the departments related to criminal justice administration.

Wide participation. The items on agenda were mostly the practical problems faced by the police not only in the Punjab but also other parts of the country. For decades the successive governments and the senior command of the police had failed to attend to such matters. The long neglect had created a very serious situation not only regarding crime but also police management. I considered it my duty to not only attend to the neglected issues but also sug­gest realistic solutions, with maximum participation from the highest to the lowest levels with their respective horizons.
To broaden the scope of discussions and the flow of ideas, I would also invite senior police officers from other provinces, Azad Kashmir and federal police agencies to attend the provincial conferences. Qamar-i-Alam, IGP Sindh, Sarosh Raoof Alvi, IGP Azad Kashmir, Masood Shah, IGP NWFP, Gauhar Zaman Mohmand, IGP Balochistan, Abbas Khan, Comman­dant, Police Academy, and their officers took keen interest.
The conferences at the provincial level were attended, invariably or oc­casionally, by the Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, Law Secretary, Excise and Taxation Secretary, Advocate General, and the Registrar of the High Court. The protocol was that the senior most among the participants would preside over the session. At the divisional headquarters, the Commis­sioners, Deputy Commissioners and Sessions Judges would also attend and give sagacious suggestions. The same pattern was followed at lower levels of the criminal justice administration.

Typical agenda. To indicate the scope of the discussions, the agenda for a three-day DIGs conference held in early 1992 is given below:
· A review and analysis of the crime situation.
· The role of Special Branch in the fight against crime.
· The bogus and inadequate sureties to organized criminals.
· The fake registration documents for vehicles and tampering with their chassis and engine numbers.
· The issues relating to illicit weapons, narcotics, theft of vehicles, adulteration, identification of racketeers and crime intelligence.
· The strategy for action against court absconders and proclaimed of­fenders.
· The issues relating to easy registration of all cases and their prompt and quality investigation, causes of acquittals by Speedy Trial Courts and proper prosecution and presentation of cases in courts.
· A plan for city policing in Faisalabad, including distribution of work, shift system for staff, and improvement of the police image.
· The negotiation techniques to deal with collective behaviour of citizens and pressure groups.
· The police command and challenges to morale and discipline.
· The preparation of Annual Administrative Reports of districts, sub­divisions and police stations.
· The measures for the modernization of the Criminal Records Offices in police stations and the Central In­telligence Agencies in districts.
· The contingency plans and training requirements at district, subdivi­sion and police station levels to deal with violent criminals and outlaws.
· How the police should deal with cuts and other methods of stealing water from river canals.
· The management of traffic in cities and on highways, including prob­lems caused by traffic hazards and commission system in the transport busi­ness.
· The personnel matters, including departmental proceedings, inquiries, appeals, orderly rooms, and annual confidential reports.
· The police requirements for transport, telecommunications, arms and ammunition, office equipment, and their purchase and distribution.
· The long- and short-term strategy for training and its equipment needs.
· The participation of community in policing, including the role of vol­unteers, members of Assemblies and local bodies, village nambardars and chowkidars, Qaomi Razakars, civil defence personnel and private security agencies.
· The preparation of the profiles of police heroes.
· The welfare measures for police shaheeds and ghazis, including wel­fare funds in districts.
· The improvement of police relations with the news media, and matters relating to police magazines, annual publications and police libraries.
· The celebration of the Shaheed Day, the Police Week, and other cul­tural and sports activities.
· The prospective planning and the preparation of a five-year plan and the next year’s budget.

The following topics were selected specially for further group discussions:
· The measures against the theft of cars.
· The organization of nakabandi and barriers in rural and urban areas.
· The organization of beat system in urban areas.
· The success story of community policing in Gujranwala range.
· The causes and remedies for delays in investigations.
· The search for an ideal relationship between the police and the press.
· The measures and techniques for the eradication of narcotics.
· The prevention of harassment to women in urban public places.
· The coordinated build-up and maintenance of records in police sta­tions, subdivisions, districts, ranges and the Crime Branch.