When I saw General (retd) Bajwa and his son wandering in Dubai without commandos, it broke my heart, says former chairman of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) Absar Alam.
Only a few weeks back, all major roads would be closed several hours prior to Bajwa's departure from his house and commandos carrying machine guns would begin to guard the route of his travel, he recalled.
In March 2020, my son Muhammad Umer Absar was waiting for his cousins outside Rawalpindi cricket stadium so they could watch the PSL match together.
He called them to let them know about his location for them to find him easily prior to the match. That was a mistake because on the same day, Bajwa was due to watch the match along-with his children.
When the law-abiding military personnel saw a 20-year-old boy speaking on the phone, all hell broke loose.
Some 15 to 16 men surrounded him, snatched his phone, and dragged him to a building. He told them his name and that he's my son, and that's when they all began to beat him mercilessly.
He was slapped, punched, and kicked and told that he had breached security. They also asked him as to whom he was communicating the information of the VVIP movement.
That wasn't all. Umer was then thrown into a police van and moved to the New Town police station. He was then subjected to a second round of torture, before being booked and locked up.
It was late when my son returned home. He cried in my arms. I had always told him to abide by the law and follow the right path, but I had no answer for him.
The trauma that my son had to face continues for a third year now, with a therapy ongoing. He is still struggling his way out of it.
Concluding, the journalist said, "The masses buy you guns after you take your oath to protect us, not so you could kidnap our sons, torture them, shoot them, or throw their tortured bodies somewhere."
Only a few weeks back, all major roads would be closed several hours prior to Bajwa's departure from his house and commandos carrying machine guns would begin to guard the route of his travel, he recalled.
In March 2020, my son Muhammad Umer Absar was waiting for his cousins outside Rawalpindi cricket stadium so they could watch the PSL match together.
He called them to let them know about his location for them to find him easily prior to the match. That was a mistake because on the same day, Bajwa was due to watch the match along-with his children.
When the law-abiding military personnel saw a 20-year-old boy speaking on the phone, all hell broke loose.
Some 15 to 16 men surrounded him, snatched his phone, and dragged him to a building. He told them his name and that he's my son, and that's when they all began to beat him mercilessly.
He was slapped, punched, and kicked and told that he had breached security. They also asked him as to whom he was communicating the information of the VVIP movement.
That wasn't all. Umer was then thrown into a police van and moved to the New Town police station. He was then subjected to a second round of torture, before being booked and locked up.
It was late when my son returned home. He cried in my arms. I had always told him to abide by the law and follow the right path, but I had no answer for him.
The trauma that my son had to face continues for a third year now, with a therapy ongoing. He is still struggling his way out of it.
Concluding, the journalist said, "The masses buy you guns after you take your oath to protect us, not so you could kidnap our sons, torture them, shoot them, or throw their tortured bodies somewhere."