The Karachi SHO of Pak Colony police station has been suspended after a recording said to capture him apologising to a drug dealer spread on social media. South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Asad Raza took the action against SHO Faisal Gul of the Pak Colony police station.
A police spokesperson said the department would approach the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for verification of the audio clip. The move matters because the suspension rests on a recording whose authenticity has not yet been formally established.
According to the suspension order, an audio recording surfaced on social media on November 5. It allegedly featured the SHO and a police constable in an “unauthorised, compromising conversation” with a known drug peddler, Kashif alias Dada. The order said the SHO had “compromised the writ of law” by pursuing mutual reconciliation with a criminal and directing his subordinate to apologise to the drug peddler.
Why the Karachi SHO was suspended
The case turns on what the recording actually contains. The order describes a conversation in which the SHO sought an apology from the alleged drug dealer, rather than acting against him. For a station house officer, whose job is to enforce the law in his area, that reversal of roles is what the department has treated as a disciplinary offence.
The police have not released the audio themselves. The account of its contents comes from the suspension order and the police statement. The NCCIA verification will determine whether the voices on the recording are genuine and whether the conversation took place as described. Until that check is done, the allegations remain unproven, and the suspension is a disciplinary step, not a court finding.
The episode spread fast online, and senior officers moved within days of the clip surfacing on November 5.
Verification comes first
The decision to send the audio to the NCCIA follows a familiar pattern in cases built on leaked recordings. The agency has been asked to verify disputed material in other high-profile cases, including the notice it sent to cricketer Mohammad Rizwan. Verification protects both sides: it stops a doctored clip from ending a career, and it stops a genuine clip from being dismissed as fake.
The suspension also fits a wider push for police accountability. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has moved to fill 17,000 vacant police posts and spend Rs70 billion on its force, a plan built around staffing and capacity rather than punishment alone. Karachi’s case shows the other side of the same problem: numbers and budgets matter little if officers on the ground are seen to compromise with criminals.
Police work carries daily risk, and a bomb disposal officer was martyred in South Waziristan earlier this week while defusing explosives. That contrast is part of why the Pak Colony audio has drawn anger. Officers who risk their lives sit alongside officers accused of cutting deals, and the department is judged on how it handles both.
Dawn reported the suspension. The next step is the NCCIA report. If the audio is verified, the department will face pressure to take further action. If it is not, the SHO will have grounds to challenge the suspension. Either way, the case will be watched as a test of whether leaked audio leads to real accountability or fades after the first headline.
Frequently asked questions
Why was the Karachi SHO suspended?
SHO Faisal Gul of Pak Colony police station was suspended after an audio clip surfaced on social media on November 5, allegedly showing him and a constable in a compromising conversation with a drug peddler.
Who ordered the suspension?
South DIG Syed Asad Raza took the action against the SHO after the audio went viral.
What did the suspension order say?
The order said the SHO had “compromised the writ of law” by pursuing mutual reconciliation with a criminal and directing his subordinate to apologise to the drug peddler.
Has the audio been verified?
Not yet. Police said they would approach the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency for verification of the recording.
