President Zardari orders the Sindh government to take strict action against street criminals in Karachi

ISLAMABAD – “I have no tolerance for illegal occupation of land and it must be stopped once and for all,” he firmly told the Chief Minister while presiding over a special law and order meeting at the Chief Minister House, during which he urged CM Shah to ensure tenure for police officers, monitor their performance and remove them if they fail to perform.

President Asif Zardari directed the Prime Minister to control street crime by launching a special operation.

“The operation must produce results so that citizens’ trust can be developed,” he said.

He also directed the Prime Minister to ensure that foreigners living and working in Sindh are provided foolproof security, stressing the need to take care of Chinese nationals working on projects related to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.

The meeting was also attended by Home Minister Mohsin Naqvi, IT Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, provincial ministers Sharjeel Memon, Nasir Shah and Ziaul Hassan Lanjar and other officials.

The Prime Minister earlier welcomed President Zardari and told him that overall law and order regarding street crime in Karachi and the dacoits factor in the katcha area had improved.

He mentioned the peaceful conduct of the Iranian President’s visit and one-day stay in Karachi.

“The conduct of PSL (Pakistan Super League) and international cricket matches and religious events are manifestations of the improved law and order situation,” he said.

CM Shah told the President that he had been monitoring the law and order situation in the province on a daily basis and had been assessing the situation through meetings and instructions to the law enforcement agencies.

The President informed about public order

The president was told that 5,357 crimes against people were reported in the first four months of the year, compared to 5,259 in the corresponding period in 2023, representing a decrease of 172 cases.

In 2024, 10,757 cases of property crimes were registered, while in 2023 it was 9,782, an increase of 975 cases.

Similarly, local and special cases showed a decrease of 785 cases by reporting 9,040 cases.

To a question, the President was told that in January, 252.32 cases of street crime were reported per day and in February, the number of street crime cases was 251.96 per day. The street crime trend declined in March and April, when 243.35 cases per day and 166.2 cases per day were reported, respectively.

In a separate question, Zardari was told that of the 48 cases of street crime that claimed 49 lives, 27 were busted by arresting 43 suspects, while 13 were killed during clashes.

CM Shah informed the President that Karachi was ranked sixth in the world crime index in 2014 but had now fallen to 82 by 2024.

The Prime Minister said the ranks and crime indexes of several major cities were higher than Karachi.

The President responded that other cities may have higher crime rates for certain reasons, but Karachi had a high crime rate for no tangible reason.

President Zardari said stolen vehicles and mobile phones were being sold in parts on the market, adding that this was unknown to police and others.

“Why is the police not taking action against the markets and people involved in the trade of stolen vehicles and mobile phones,” he wondered, directing CM Shah to take action against them and report the progress to him.

The President was informed that steps taken by the police to control street crime included reactivation of Shaheen Force with deployment of 386 motorcycles, renewal of Madadgar-15 with deployment of another 168 vehicles and 120 motorcycles, e-tagging of repeat offenders with a proposal for 4000 devices and the Sindh Smart Surveillance System project for 40 toll plazas with facial recognition cameras.

Siddiqui welcomed the President’s law and order meeting in Karachi and said it would boost citizens’ confidence in the government. He requested the President to hold such meetings every month.

Progress in the Katcha area

President Zardari was informed that 107 police pickets have been established along the left bank of the Indus River as of February 2023.

He directed the Chief Minister to set up police pickets on the right bank of the river to cover the katcha areas of Shikarpur and Kashmore districts.

The President was told that 103 persons had been kidnapped in the past four months, of which 76 were reported while 47 were not. He was further informed that the police had recovered 104 and 19 outstanding invoices.

The President was also told that during the operation against dacoits, police killed 63 people, injured 120 and arrested 418, while 469 weapons of various kinds were recovered in the four months.

In addition, he was told that 17 police officers were killed while 27 were injured during the operation.

The President directed CM Shah to intensify the ongoing operation against the bandits, stressing that anyone involved in or behind the kidnapping cases must be dealt with sternly to set an example for others.

“Kidnapping for ransom is a serious crime and must be dealt with accordingly,” the President said.

President Zardari directed the Prime Minister to complete the Karachi Safe City project on a war footing and initiate the dualization of the Northern Bypass to make the entry and exit points effective.

He also directed CM Shah to take up development work on both sides of the Indus River.

Zardari also directed the prime minister to engage notables to resolve tribal feuds in the katcha areas so that the social aspect of it could also be addressed.

The President directed Naqvi to develop effective coordination for tri-state governance between Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan.

He also directed the Home Minister to expedite work on Ghotki-Kandhkot Bridge so that law and order could be improved in the areas.

To this, Naqvi said he had provided necessary security to the engineers working on the Ghotki-Kandhkot bridge so that the work could be completed at the earliest.

President Zardari further directed the Home Minister to obtain necessary approvals for the Sindh Police to procure sensitive weapons, equipment and gadgets from the federal government.

MQM-P delegation meets president

A delegation of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan led by Siddiqui visited President Zardari at CM House and congratulated him on his election for the second term.

The MQM-P delegation discussed the issue of street crime in the city with the President.

The President assured the MQM-P delegation that he would personally monitor the situation and see that it would be improved.

“This is an important issue, that is why I have come here to assess the overall law and order situation in the CM House,” the President said.