Why top officials escaped scrutiny as police allegedly assaulted husband after Bhati Gate tragedy

The Bhati Gate manhole tragedy has sparked fresh debate as media scrutiny focuses on junior police officers, while Punjab’s top leadership remains largely untouched despite serious questions over accountability.

WEBDESK – MediaBites – January 30, 2027

As public anger grew over the deaths of a mother and her young daughter who fell into an open manhole near Data Darbar’s Bhati Gate, a troubling question began to echo in media and civil society circles. Why has criticism centered on junior police officers, while the Chief Minister of Punjab, the Inspector General of Police Punjab, and the provincial Home Minister have largely escaped public scrutiny?

The debate intensified after Ghulam Murtaza, the husband of the deceased woman, accused police of assault, intimidation, and coercion at a time when he expected support and compassion.

Allegations of assault and pressure
Speaking to the media, Ghulam Murtaza said he went to the police to record his statement following the tragedy but was instead treated as a suspect. He said officers questioned whether he had argued with his wife and repeatedly insisted that a body could not move through a manhole, pressuring him to accept a version of events he firmly rejected.

According to his account, police detained him, seized his mobile phone, and beat him with belts and batons in an attempt to force a confession suggesting he had made his wife disappear. Even after he identified his wife in a photograph shown by senior officers, he claimed police refused to accept his statement and did not tell him where the body had been recovered.

Accountability is limited to lower ranks
After reports of custodial violence surfaced, the DIG Operations Lahore suspended the Bhati Gate SHO and issued a show-cause notice to the DSP. An internal inquiry was launched through the police accountability bureau to examine why the husband and his cousin were taken into custody during rescue and recovery operations.

Critics, however, say this response reflects a familiar pattern in which accountability stops at field officers while senior decision makers at the provincial level remain untouched and unquestioned.

Why the silence at the top
Analysts point out that the incident occurred in a sensitive and high-security area under the direct administrative oversight of the Punjab government and provincial police leadership. Despite this, televised debates and public commentary largely avoided questioning the roles of the Chief Minister of Punjab, the Inspector General of Police of Punjab, and the Home Minister, all of whom are responsible for governance, policing priorities, and internal accountability.

In similar tragedies elsewhere in the country, senior leadership often faces sustained media pressure. In this case, their role has largely been limited to ordering inquiries, a step some observers describe as distancing rather than meaningful accountability.

Fresh claims add to concerns
The controversy deepened when the victim’s family alleged that police obtained thumbprints and signatures on blank papers, allegedly to ease legal pressure on responsible departments. Police denied the claim, saying the thumb impression was taken to correct a clerical error in the FIR.

Rights advocates say such explanations fail to address the deeper issue of power imbalance, particularly when grieving families are dealing with law enforcement.

Beyond a tragic accident
After funeral prayers, the mother and daughter were laid to rest in Shorkot. But the incident has now moved beyond a tragic accident. It has become a test of whether accountability in Punjab is real or merely symbolic.

For many observers, the most disturbing aspect is not only the open manhole that claimed two lives, but a policing response that allegedly treated a victim’s family as suspects, while senior officials remained shielded from criticism.

As investigations continue, the public waits for an answer to a fundamental question. Does accountability in Punjab truly reach the top, or does it stop where power begins?