Karachi, July 29, 2021 (PPI-OT): Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah presiding over 26th meeting of Apex Committee alerted the police and other law enforcement agencies to beef up security and enhance the coordinated intelligence work so that fall outs of war in Afghanistan could be controlled here.
“After withdrawal of US troops in Afghanistan and advancement of Taliban was likely to rise the insurgency which may affect Pakistan, particularly Karachi in terms of terrorism and influx of illegal immigrants, therefore we have to be prepared to control the situation,” Mr Shah said.
The Apex Committee reviewing major heads of crime in the province during 2021 observed that terrorism, target killing and kidnapping for ransom incidents have almost come to an end, but murders and extortion incidents have increased by 25 percent and 65 percent respectively compared to the incidents reported in 2020. However, the rise in extortion and killing incident were the result of operation in katcha area and personal enmities and disputes.
The meeting was attended by Minister Local Government Nasir Shah, Advisor Law Murtaza Wahab, Corps Commander Karachi Lt. Gen Nadeem Anjum, Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, IG Police Mushtaq Maher, DG Rangers Major Gen. Iftikhar Hussain, Prosecutor General Fiaz Shah, Commissioner Karachi Naveed Shaikh, ACS Home Qazi Shahid Pervez, Adl IG Special Branch Ghulam Nabi Memon, Adl IGkarachi Imran Minhas, provincial heads of different agencies and other concerned officers.
Terrorism: Adl IG Special Branch Ghulam Nabi Memon told meeting that the clashes between Taliban and the Afghan government may bring illegal immigrants to the province, particularly to Karachi.
The on-going clashes in Afghanistan may rise criminal activities in Karachi for generating funds to meet their requirements. Therefore, the chief minister directed the law enforcement agencies to speed up their targeted operation against the terrorists. Mr Shah said that an eagle eye may be set on the banned outfits and their activities.
It was decided to enhance security everywhere and improve sectarian harmony by meeting with ulemas. The chief minister decided to revamp the intelligence set up of Special branch and directed IG police to enhance level of preparedness. It was pointed out that the attacks on law enforcement agencies have come down from 15 in 2020 to three in 2021.
Karachi crime situation
Murders: The IG police said that in 2021 (upto July 15) 254 persons were murdered, of them 126 cases have been detected by arresting 161 accused. He categorically pointed out that no political, ethnical or sectarian target killing is reported. Most of the murder were committed due to personal enmity. The meeting was told that during 2021 28 cases of kidnapping for ransom were reported, of them 12 were genuine cases. Police arrested 36 accused and three were killed in encounter.
Extortion: Talking about extortion, the IGP said that during 2021, upto July 15, 74 cases of extortion were reported, of them 62 have been worked out, four extortionists were killed and 94 arrested. He said that during the investigation it was revealed that 12 gangs had committed 12 extortion cases and some of them have been busted.
Street Crime: The meeting was told that on average monthly street crime incidents reported in the city have been recorded at 2039.4 which showed 67.6 cases daily. On average 16.9 four-wheelers were being snatched in the city every month. The four-wheeler monthly theft has been recorded at 129.7 and 4.3 vehicles daily. The monthly two-wheeler snatching is 335.2 bike means 11. 1 daily. It theft has been recorded at 3501.7 motorcycles every month.
All heads of street crime: Adl IG Karachi Imran Minhas said that 3181 incidents of street crime were reported upto July 15, 2021. Giving performance of the city police during 2021, he said that 189 encounters with criminals were held, 25 criminals were arrested, 607 criminals arrested red-handed, 982 criminals involved in robberies arrested, 2631 involved in vehicles snatching/theft rounded up and 3,735 different kind of illicit weapons were recovered.
The chief minister directed ADL IG Karachi to take strict action against street crime. “You have to mobilize you police stations strongly,” he directed the city police.
Safe city project: Under the project 10,000 high-definition cameras or a complete Surveillance System would be installed in the city. The meeting was told that incompliance of 24rth Apex Committee directions project inception report, technical viability assessment report, bidding documents, PC-1, survey report and control room survey were handed over to M/s NRTC.
The cabinet approved the proposal to engaging M/s NRTC and a MoU was signed with between Safe City project Authority and M/s NRTC. The NRTC has submitted a Rs29.67 billion cost of project which is Rs5.907 billion higher than the project cost approved in the PC-I.
The chief minister said that he has already allocated Rs6 billion for the project and it has been delayed for one or the other reason. He constituted a committee comprising technical experts of Pak army, police, P and D and some members from private sector to evaluate the financial proposal of the NRTC and submit their report within 6 weeks so that project could be started.
Tribal Feuds: The meeting was told that tribal feuds such as Sabozai- Chachar in Kashmore claimed 12 lives on May 15, 2021, Teghani-Bijarani in Shikarpur district has so far claimed 26 lives and various others have becoming nurseries of breeding outlaws and dacoits. The chief minister said that political influence would be used to bring an end to tribal feuds. However, police and district administration should keep its work to stop tribal clashes.
Operation in Katcha area: IG Police said that during 2021, some 89 encounters were conducted in Ghotki, 75 in Sukkur, 73 Kashmore and 68 Shikarpur and busted 49 gangs and killed 16 dacoits, nine in Sukkur, four in Kashmore and three in Shikarpur and recovered 83 kidnappees and arrested 42 kidnappers. The meeting was informed that 583 dacoits/criminals have been arrested in the on-going operation in the katcha area.
The meeting was told that there were some challenges such as uninterrupted supply of arms and ammunition (higher grade) to the criminals, ineffective system to check the movement of criminals across the river/water bodies due to absence of Riverine police, new trends of kidnapping of enticement through female voice, flooding of operational are in Katcha by mid-July and emerging collusion of banned organisations with dacoits of katcha rea.
At this the chief minister directed IG Police to prepare a plan to create a Riverine Police meanwhile he directed local government minister Nasir Shah to work out a detail plan for construction of approaching roads right from under-construction Kandhkot-Ghotki bridge to the villages of Katcha area.
Mr Shah directed all the law enforcement agencies to develop strong coordination to bust the nexus of banned outfits with the dacoits. ‘This is a new and emerging threat, and it has to be dealt with iron hands, the CM directed the law enforcement agencies.
Unregistered Security guards: ACS Home Qazi Shahid Pervez told the meeting that his department was actively working on registering private security guards working in private agencies.
The chief minister directed IG police to start taking action against unregistered vehicles loaded with unregistered private guards moving in the city by displaying weapons. “We have already banned display of weapons in the province, and I have notice that most of the private guards carrying weapons are sitting at the gates of bungalows in the city,” he said and directed IG police to take action against them.
Rallies banned: On the recommendation of the IG Police the chief minister banned rallies, protests, sit-in demonstrations and assembly of persons at 11 specific points of Karachi and arterial highways, railway tracks and their adjacent areas, Inter-city busy terminals and major road through the province. ACS Home said that he has already issued a notification to impose Section 144 for 60 days.
Minorities: The chief minister directed IG Police to issue necessary instructions to the police to provide protection to the minorities. “They have equal rights in the country, and he would not tolerate if any highhandedness was committed with the minorities.
Mr Shah said that crime against women and children was intolerable, and it must be curbed. Those who have been arrested in killing a woman or raping a child must be brought to the book by pursuing their cases in the court of law, he concluded.
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