Claim: During a recent press conference, IG Punjab Dr Usman Anwar said that “we committed 670 murders on Maryam Nawaz’s orders.”
Fact: The claim is false. A review of the complete press conference shows that Dr Anwar made no such statement.
A video of the current Inspector General (IG) of Police, Punjab, Dr Usman Anwar, has been shared online. It contains the following Urdu text:
“ہم نے مریم نواز کے کہنے پر 670 قتل کیے ہیں۔”
آئی جی پنجاب نے نیا پنڈورا بکس کھول دیا۔”
[Translation: We committed 670 murders on Maryam Nawaz’s orders.
The IG Punjab has opened a new Pandora’s box.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check found the claim dubious as the Inspector General of Police, Punjab did not mention anything of the sort even in the clip shared by the user. Following is our translation of what he says:
“The person against whom a murder case had been filed in Pindi was also a relative of the PML-N member. The CM (Chief Minister) had him arrested. The person who slapped a sub-inspector was also a PML-N member. Legal action was taken against him and he apologised. Two days ago, legal action was taken against another PML-N member who is now an MPA by the CM.”
He added that:
“PML-N member’s brother’s son – the one you are talking about, Ahmed Jawaid – and the one involved in the murder case, is out on bail. His name was immediately put on PIL, and he was not allowed to leave the country. He also participated in the investigation yesterday. And I assure you that this is categorically the punishment. Under the leadership of CCPO Zeeshan, the team they have formed will work with complete justice. Everything is clear in the video. ‘Common intention’ and 109 and whose fire it was- all these things will be written in the report and presented in court. Not once has any PML-N member, even indirectly, called me to ask about this matter.”
Soch Fact Check then searched for the complete press conference held by the IG Punjab Police Dr Usman Anwar. In the footage shared by Geo News on 24 October, he is addressing the media alongside Additional IG CCD Sohail Zafar Chattha and Special Home Secretary Fazal-ur-Rehman. The press conference focused on the current crime situation in Punjab and highlighted the Crime Control Department’s (CCD) key strategies to combat organised crime, including recent actions and future plans.
Dr Anwar discussed the “Weapon-Free Punjab” initiative and commended the chief minister for her role in reforming the policing structure in the province. He further added that, after assuming office, she launched measures to end the “daala [pickup truck] culture” and crack down on all forms of mafia activity in Punjab.
At no point in the footage of the presser do we witness him say that Maryam Nawaz ordered the murder of 670 people.
We also reviewed the portion where he took questions from reporters after the press conference – this segment appeared in City 42’s footage but is not included in Geo News’ coverage. The viral video corresponds with this part of the session from 46:12 to 47:10. However, he does not say anything about Nawaz directing or ordering the killing of 670 people neither before nor after this segment. Instead, he refers to the chief minister’s actions against PML-N members in response to a reporter’s question about a murder case in which the accused is a relative of a PML-N leader.
Hum News’ and Samaa News’ footage of the press conference showed the same sequence of events as Geo News.
Soch Fact Check also conducted a keyword search using the terms “IG Punjab”, “Dr Usman Anwar”, “670 murders”, “CM Punjab”, and “Maryam Nawaz” to check for reports from credible news outlets on such a statement. However, it did not yield any results either.,
After a review of IG Punjab’s complete press conference and a lack of credible news reports on any such statement by him, Soch Fact Check confirms that the post makes a false claim.
Virality
The claim was shared here, here, here, here, and here on Facebook. Archived here, here, here, here, and here.
On Instagram, it was shared here, here, and here. Archived here, here, and here.
On TikTok, it was shared here (archive).
Conclusion: IG Punjab Dr Usman Anwar did not say that “we committed 670 murders on Maryam Nawaz’s orders” during the press conference in question.
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Background image in cover photo: City 42
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com