Six Karachi cops suspended for posting ‘inappropriate’ social media videos

In this file photograph, taken on August 3, 2024, Pakistan police stand guard on a street in Karachi. (AN Photo/File)
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Updated 06 September 2024
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Six Karachi cops suspended for posting ‘inappropriate’ social media videos

  • Sindh Inspector General issues order barring officers from posting “inappropriate” videos while in police uniform
  • “Strict action will be taken against any police official found guilty of breaking these rules,” Memon’s statement says 

KARACHI: Six police constables in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi have been suspended for posting “inappropriate” videos on social media, police said on Thursday, days after the suspension of a policewoman for similar reasons. 
On Tuesday, Maria Gill was suspended after posting a TikTok video in which she could be seen inviting viewers to meet her at a location where she and other colleagues had been posted on duty. She was suspended for “unnecessarily endangering the privacy and lives of her fellow colleagues.”
On Thursday, Karachi police said six police constables, including two women, had been suspended “with immediate effect” over “inappropriate” videos posted on different social media platforms, calling on them to “report to their respective Zonal Headquarters, where they will be attend daily roll call and parade.”

Separately, Sindh Inspector General Ghulam Nabi Memon issued an order barring all officers from posting “inappropriate” videos while in uniform, forwarding “disgusting” messages on WhatsApp, or uploading any other content that harmed the reputation of the police department. 
“Strict action will be taken against any police official if they are found guilty of breaking these rules,” the statement said. 
This is not the first time a police officer in Pakistan has faced disciplinary action for social media activity deemed inappropriate by higher-ups. 
In August 2024, lady Constable Maryam Bhatti was dismissed from Rawalpindi police for similar reasons. 
On July 31, 2024, Constable Muqaddas from Islamabad was dismissed from the Federal Police’s Counter-Terrorism Department for making a TikTok video while using an official vehicle. 
On July 29, 2024, Assistant Sub-Inspector Inayatullah Niazi was suspended in Chiniot for allowing a transgender person to film a video in the SHO’s office, which was deemed “disrespectful” to the police uniform.
On February 27, 2024, Constable Bahawal Sher was suspended in Faisalabad for sharing a video on social media where he was seen smoking while in uniform and displaying pistols.
Lady Constable Sumbul from Sindh faced an investigation on October 14, 2023, for posting a controversial video supporting Israel while Lady Constable Mehwish Khan was suspended on May 16, 2022, in Muzaffargarh for uploading videos in police uniform.
On July 24, 2020, Constable Wafa Tauqeer was also suspended in Lahore after a TikTok video of her in uniform went viral.


Pakistan reviews austerity measures amid Middle East crisis, urges strict nationwide implementation

Updated 11 March 2026
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Pakistan reviews austerity measures amid Middle East crisis, urges strict nationwide implementation

  • Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar chairs review meeting of austerity steps
  • Officials briefed on salary cuts, school closures, four‑day week, petrol conservation

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government on Wednesday assessed progress on a sweeping set of austerity measures introduced to mitigate the country’s economic strain from sharply rising global oil prices and supply disruptions linked to the ongoing war in the Middle East.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif this week announced a series of austerity steps, including a four‑day work week for government offices, requiring 50  percent of staff to work from home, cutting fuel allowances for official vehicles by half, grounding up to 60  percent of the government fleet and closing all schools for two weeks to conserve fuel amid the global oil crisis.

The measures were unveiled in response to global oil market volatility triggered by the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which has disrupted supply routes such as the Strait of Hormuz and pushed crude prices sharply higher, straining Pakistan’s heavily import‑dependent energy sector.

“The meeting stressed the importance of strict and transparent adherence to the austerity measures, promoting fiscal responsibility and prudent use of public resources,” Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar said in a statement.

He was chairing a meeting of the Committee for Monitoring and Implementation of Conservation and Additional Austerity Measures, constituted under the directions of the PM, bringing together federal and provincial officials to review execution of the broad cost‑cutting plan. 

Dar emphasized the government’s commitment to enforcing the PM’s austerity steps nationwide. The committee’s review also covered reductions in departmental expenditure, deductions from salaries of senior officials earning over Rs. 300,000 ($1,120), and coordination with provincial administrations to ensure uniform implementation of the plan.

Participants at the meeting reiterated that all ministries and divisions must continue strict monitoring and reporting, with transparent oversight mechanisms, as Pakistan navigates the economic pressures from the prolonged Middle East crisis and its fallout on global energy and trade markets.