A shocking case of negligence has surfaced at the Punjab Traffic Police Driving Licence Branch in Multan, where a man was issued a driving licence carrying a woman’s photograph instead of his own, according to ARY News.
The affected citizen, Asghar Sawal, said he applied for his driving licence in Multan in 2025 after completing the required training and passing the driving test. He paid Rs7,000 for the process. However, when he finally received the licence, he was stunned to discover that it displayed a woman’s photo.
Asghar, who currently lives in Karachi for work, said frequent travel to Multan is difficult for him. Despite this, he contacted the licence branch to have the mistake corrected. Instead of acknowledging the error, officials reportedly blamed him and demanded Rs650 to amend the record.
Punjab Sets New Record by Issuing Over 2 Million Driving Licences in Just 18 Days
He was also informed that the correction process could take up to four months, even though the mistake was clearly made by the department.
“I was surprised and frustrated. It was their error, yet they are asking me to pay and wait for months,” Asghar said.
The incident has raised serious concerns about data handling, record management, and accountability within the Punjab Traffic Police’s licensing system. Since a driving licence is an official identity document, such an error could lead to legal and practical issues during traffic checks, travel, or verification.
Asghar has appealed to the Inspector General of Punjab Police to intervene and order an immediate correction without charging any additional fee. The case has also sparked public concern about the reliability of the driving licence system and whether similar errors may have affected other citizens.
