Pakistani cricketer Umar Akmal, known for his scuffles with the authorities, has become embroiled in yet another controversy.
The star player, who was a part of Lahore Qalandars in the 2nd edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), said that excise police officers had misbehaved with him.
Police of Punjab’s Ministry of Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control Department were conducting an operation against fancy number plates near Cavalry Ground area, stopping vehicles and taking off their illegal number plates, when they stopped Akmal’s car and did the same.
This made the cricketer angry and led to a minor scuffle with the police, although he didn’t get out of his car.
He claimed that the police officers misbehaved and didn’t even recognise him.
However, the excise department officials have rejected the claims.
“We don’t discriminate when it comes to stopping cars with illegal number plates. We have also stopped the cars of many MPAs,” said Excise Department Region C Director Muhammad Asif, who was present at the site.
When the officials stopped his car, Akmal started misbehaving with the police, Asif said, challenging Akmal’s claims that the police had misbehaved with him. He said that the officer told Akmal to get another number plate but that enraged him.
When Akmal saw the media approaching, he immediately left the site, Asif claimed.
“We respect him but he should set an example of how citizens should behave,” said Asif. “Previously, he misbehaved with traffic police and now he has misbehaved with the excise department.”
This is not the first time Akmal has had a disagreement with the police. In 2014, he was formally charged for engaging in a brawl with a traffic warden near Firdous market in Lahore. He was arrested and an FIR was registered for ‘obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public functions’. Later, the challan was withdrawn by the traffic warden.