CPEC engineers clash with Pak Punjab Police

A group of Chinese engineers working on a China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project in Khanewal, a city in Pakistan's Punjab province clashed with police yesterday.

Chinese engineers and other staffers engaged in the construction of M4 Motorway, thrashed the police men after the latter tried to stop them from leaving their camp without security, a report in the Dawn said.

A video showed a Chinese national standing on the bonnet of a police van, another video showed several Chinese nationals thrashing policemen and some local people in plain clothes, the report said, showing evidence of the altercation through mobile phone clips doing the rounds on social media.

According to the reports, in a further provocation, the Chinese citizens cut off electricity supply to the police camp. Local police tried to control the situation by locking the Chinese citizens in their camps.

The District Police Officer (DPO) Rizwan Umar Gondal conducted an investigation and held the Chinese workers responsible for Wednesday's untoward incident. He has recommended the deportation of the five officials, including the country project manager of the foreign company.

The DPO also appealed to the Punjab government to declare five Chinese persona non grata.