Since its release, Dhurandhar has wreaked havoc on social media as well as the film industry. The spy thriller directed by Aditya Dhar has triggered the revival of one of the most controversial topics in the history of Pakistan. It’s none other than Lyari and its controversial mafia-dominated past. Starring Ranveer Singh, Sanjay Dutt, and Akshaye Khanna, the film showcases the gang wars of Lyari, the most notorious area in Karachi, that engulfed the entire nation of Pakistan in the early 2000s.
Although Akshaye Khanna steals the spotlight by playing terror-invoked gangster Rehman Dakait, Sanjay Dutt’s portrayal of SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan, who killed Dakait in an encounter, is also notable. As the film ‘Dhurandhar’ tends to merge reality with fiction, the masses are increasingly inquisitive about the real-life story of Chaudhry Aslam Khan. A real-life ‘Singham’ was one of the unafraid crime fighters. However, he is also often disrespected for being the representation of the encounter-based policing practice in Pakistan. So, let’s get to know more about him:
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Who was the real-life SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan?
SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan was a senior officer in the Sindh Police and one of the most formidable crime fighters in Pakistan. He was born in 1963 in the Arghushal village of Mansehra district to Advocate Akram Khan and belonged to the Arghushal clan of the Swati ethnic group. Having received his primary education, Aslam migrated with his family to Karachi. That’s where he later met Rehman Dakait.
He joined the Sindh Police as an Assistant Sub-Inspector in 1984. Known for his hard-nosed attitude, Aslam rose through the ranks, becoming an Inspector and then Station House Officer of Gulbahar police station in 1987. His career picked up pace in 1999 when he was promoted as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Nazimabad.
During the 2000s, Chaudhry Aslam held key positions and was promoted to Superintendent of Police in 2005. In 2010, he took charge of the Anti-Extremism Crime Wing of the Criminal Investigation Department. Between 2005 and 2013, he led operations against gang war criminals, militants, and target killers linked to several banned outfits.
real Aslam Choudhary 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/ExQ966g1Ht
— 😉 (@thatAguy_) December 8, 2025
How did he lock horns with Rehman Dakait?
The story of SP Chaudhry Aslam and gangster Rehman Dakait is one of Karachi’s most violent and controversial chapters, now retold on screen in Dhurandhar. As an ‘encounter specialist’ in the 1990s, Aslam had made a reputation through brutal crackdowns, but a phase of suspensions and controversies was followed by a comeback in 2004, when he was assigned to eliminate target killers. As the head of the Lyari Task Force, Aslam was caught in a vicious turf war with Rehman Dakait.
Their showdown thus became inevitable. Aslam’s career saw another turning point in 2006 with his arrest in the killing of gangster Mushtaq Brohi. However, he was later released on bail in 2006. In 2009, the rivalry reached its climax with the killing of Rehman Dakait in what police called an encounter. However, critics alleged that the whole encounter was staged and that Aslam Khan killed Dakait with foolproof planning. The Dhurandhar movie captures this uneasy duel, blurring the line between law, justice, and vengeance, just as it played out in Lyari’s dark alleys.
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However, the way Dakait was killed in real life and in reel life is totally different. And that’s the whole point of contention. In the movie, it was shown that it was Ranveer Singh’s character, Hamza Mazari, who killed Rehman while colluding with SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan. But news reports say that it was SP Chowdhy Aslam Khan who killed the dreaded gangster with his own hands.
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What happened to SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan after Rehman Dakait’s death?
Following the death of Rehman Dakait, Chaudhry Aslam Khan was still in the thick of Karachi’s never-ending war on crime, with his influence reaching new heights. He led aggressive crackdowns to flush out criminals from the violence-ridden neighborhood. But the victories came at a cost. Aslam had made powerful enemies, particularly among militant outfits he had pursued for years.
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Nonetheless, on January 9, 2014, the long pursuit of retribution finally caught up with him. A car loaded with explosives struck Aslam’s convoy on the Lyari Expressway in the Essa Nagri area of Karachi. It killed not only Aslam but also two other policemen, his guard, and his driver. Later, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan took responsibility for the attack, calling Aslam one of their ‘top targets.’ In a shocking revelation, it was later found that Aslam’s own driver and bodyguard had tipped off the attackers about the movement of the convoy.
Pakistan blames India for SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan’s assassination
Pakistan soon linked the assassination of SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan with India’s RAW. In 2017, Pakistan claimed that Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was arrested in Balochistan on charges of espionage as well as terrorism, supported the murder of Aslam.
A video released by the ISI’s public relations wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), featured a confession by Jadhav, who claimed the murder was conducted by RAW on the orders of its former head, Anil Dhasmana. The Indian government strongly denied these claims, calling the confession coerced, doctored, and extracted under torture, and accused Pakistan of politicizing the murder to push a false narrative.
Who knows, maybe this will be shown in part 2 of Dhurandhar, which is going to be released next year.
What do you think about SP Chaudhry Aslam Khan’s character in Dhurandhar? Do share your thoughts with us in the comment section of this article.
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