When news broke about the death of SP Adeel Akbar, it was first labelled a suicide, then an accident. The shifting explanations stirred unease across police circles. Accusations surfaced, and those in command rushed to contain the damage. But beyond the confusion lay something far more troubling — a silence that has followed too many such deaths, each one absorbed quietly, never truly explained.

The department mourns briefly when it’s a senior officer, and even less when it’s a constable — the so-called “children of a lesser god.” Whether suicide, accident, or “unexplained,” these tragedies expose what the institution has long refused to face: the relentless professional stress that policing in Pakistan quietly breeds and too often buries.

This is not the first case, and sadly, it won’t be the last. Too many before have been brushed aside. Families are consoled, discussions fade, and the story moves on for everyone except those left grieving. Instead of learning from loss, institutions often retreat into denial, believing silence will restore order. It never does. It only deepens mistrust within and beyond the force. Every department has its bright side and its shadows. But in law enforcement, behind every polished uniform stands a person fighting unseen battles of anxiety, exhaustion, and disillusionment, in a system that demands endurance but rarely nurtures it.

Traffic plan with alternate routes announced during PIMEC- 2025 in Karachi

Policing is no ordinary profession. When I first joined, everyone wanted me to visit their homes in uniform — a symbol of pride and authority that made them feel powerful by........

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