Karachi—Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry slammed the Sindh government
over the rise in Karachi violence during Tuesday’s hearing of the suo
motu case on the security situation in the city.
He said the government has the resources and machinery to restore peace in the metropolis but lacks the will to do so. He directed the Sindh government to act immediately to curb the violence.
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry ordered Attorney General Anwarul Haq to file a new report, carrying the latest information about those who are creating unrest in Karachi.
“It is time for the provincial government to wake up,” the Chief Justice told the Sindh government’s counsel, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada. “The matter has become serious and a fundamental right to security is being violated,” he added.
The chief justice questioned Pirzada about the police’s failure to identify victims of target killings, saying that FIRs were registered against unnamed persons.
He took notice of the fact that none of the accused were presented in Anti-Terrorism Courts, nor were a challaned by the police. He slammed the police for not recording the statement of an injured victim who was recovered earlier this week.
He noted that the provincial government’s move to borrow federal security forces has proved very expensive. The better alternative, the CJ remarked, was to develop the provincial police force.
Earlier during the hearing of the suo motu notice case of Karachi violence, the Sindh government’s Counsel Hafeez Pirzada told the court that 2.5 million foreigners are living in Karachi but less than 100,000Nasir Mahmood
Karachi—Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry slammed the Sindh government over the rise in Karachi violence during Tuesday’s hearing of the suo motu case on the security situation in the city.
He said the government has the resources and machinery to restore peace in the metropolis but lacks the will to do so. He directed the Sindh government to act immediately to curb the violence.
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry ordered Attorney General Anwarul Haq to file a new report, carrying the latest information about those who are creating unrest in Karachi.
“It is time for the provincial government to wake up,” the Chief Justice told the Sindh government’s counsel, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada. “The matter has become serious and a fundamental right to security is being violated,” he added.
The chief justice questioned Pirzada about the police’s failure to identify victims of target killings, saying that FIRs were registered against unnamed persons.
He took notice of the fact that none of the accused were presented in Anti-Terrorism Courts, nor were a challaned by the police. He slammed the police for not recording the statement of an injured victim who was recovered earlier this week.
He noted that the provincial government’s move to borrow federal security forces has proved very expensive. The better alternative, the CJ remarked, was to develop the provincial police force.
Earlier during the hearing of the suo motu notice case of Karachi violence, the Sindh government’s Counsel Hafeez Pirzada told the court that 2.5 million foreigners are living in Karachi but less than 100,000 have been registered.
He maintained that in recent years, these foreigners have increased their influence and may be blamed for the rise in violence in Pakistan’s heartland.
Chronicling the history of ethnic clashes in Karachi, Pirzada said the Pashtuns and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) first clashed in Sohrab Goth during the rule of General Ziaul Haq in the 80s.
Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, appearing for the Sindh government, said that ethnic violence has increased in the city following the restoration of the commissionerate system. He said many people from varied ethnicities are living in Karachi illegally. He requested the court to shift hearing to Islamabad as it had put strain on the provincial government for law and order.
Upon this, members of various political parties present in the court objected, saying the presence of the SC larger bench in the city has restored peace to a great extent. They pleaded that the SC should not shift the hearing venue. The parties that requested to be party in the case included ANP, JI and Baloch Ittehad in addition to Karachi Bar Association and Sindh High Court Bar Association.
The SC rejected the plea of Pirzada to shift venue for the case. Babar Awan was expected to present his arguments as a counsel for the federal government. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry remarked that the court could meet on the Eid day if need be. The Chief Justice said that the case will be heard in Karachi.
Chief Justice Chaudhry said extortion of money (bhatta) was snagged like a right in the city accompanied by frequent recoveries of mutilated bodies. CJ Chaudhry said he would hear the case even during Eid holidays if needed, as he would remain present in Karachi, adding, “Karachi is home to all and is city of everyone.”
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry was hearing the case while the bench comprises of Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani, Justice Ameer Hani Muslim and Justice Ghulam Rabbani.
Sindh government lawyer Abdul Hafeez Pirzada in his arguments said that the ratio of punishments to the accused is very low while the powers of Police and Rangers are not being utilized properly. He said that the ratio of punishments could be made better by providing security to the witnesses. Pirzada said that 300 people lost their lives after the elections in Ayub Khan Era while same kind of riots took place in Mumtaz Bhutto’s time in 1972. He further told the court that Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) came into being after Sohrab Goth incident.
Pirzada said it is important to cure the root causes of this violence. He said the situation in the city has improved after the court took suo motu notice on August 24.
The hearing of the case was adjourned till September 5.
He said the government has the resources and machinery to restore peace in the metropolis but lacks the will to do so. He directed the Sindh government to act immediately to curb the violence.
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry ordered Attorney General Anwarul Haq to file a new report, carrying the latest information about those who are creating unrest in Karachi.
“It is time for the provincial government to wake up,” the Chief Justice told the Sindh government’s counsel, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada. “The matter has become serious and a fundamental right to security is being violated,” he added.
The chief justice questioned Pirzada about the police’s failure to identify victims of target killings, saying that FIRs were registered against unnamed persons.
He took notice of the fact that none of the accused were presented in Anti-Terrorism Courts, nor were a challaned by the police. He slammed the police for not recording the statement of an injured victim who was recovered earlier this week.
He noted that the provincial government’s move to borrow federal security forces has proved very expensive. The better alternative, the CJ remarked, was to develop the provincial police force.
Earlier during the hearing of the suo motu notice case of Karachi violence, the Sindh government’s Counsel Hafeez Pirzada told the court that 2.5 million foreigners are living in Karachi but less than 100,000Nasir Mahmood
Karachi—Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry slammed the Sindh government over the rise in Karachi violence during Tuesday’s hearing of the suo motu case on the security situation in the city.
He said the government has the resources and machinery to restore peace in the metropolis but lacks the will to do so. He directed the Sindh government to act immediately to curb the violence.
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry ordered Attorney General Anwarul Haq to file a new report, carrying the latest information about those who are creating unrest in Karachi.
“It is time for the provincial government to wake up,” the Chief Justice told the Sindh government’s counsel, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada. “The matter has become serious and a fundamental right to security is being violated,” he added.
The chief justice questioned Pirzada about the police’s failure to identify victims of target killings, saying that FIRs were registered against unnamed persons.
He took notice of the fact that none of the accused were presented in Anti-Terrorism Courts, nor were a challaned by the police. He slammed the police for not recording the statement of an injured victim who was recovered earlier this week.
He noted that the provincial government’s move to borrow federal security forces has proved very expensive. The better alternative, the CJ remarked, was to develop the provincial police force.
Earlier during the hearing of the suo motu notice case of Karachi violence, the Sindh government’s Counsel Hafeez Pirzada told the court that 2.5 million foreigners are living in Karachi but less than 100,000 have been registered.
He maintained that in recent years, these foreigners have increased their influence and may be blamed for the rise in violence in Pakistan’s heartland.
Chronicling the history of ethnic clashes in Karachi, Pirzada said the Pashtuns and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) first clashed in Sohrab Goth during the rule of General Ziaul Haq in the 80s.
Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, appearing for the Sindh government, said that ethnic violence has increased in the city following the restoration of the commissionerate system. He said many people from varied ethnicities are living in Karachi illegally. He requested the court to shift hearing to Islamabad as it had put strain on the provincial government for law and order.
Upon this, members of various political parties present in the court objected, saying the presence of the SC larger bench in the city has restored peace to a great extent. They pleaded that the SC should not shift the hearing venue. The parties that requested to be party in the case included ANP, JI and Baloch Ittehad in addition to Karachi Bar Association and Sindh High Court Bar Association.
The SC rejected the plea of Pirzada to shift venue for the case. Babar Awan was expected to present his arguments as a counsel for the federal government. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry remarked that the court could meet on the Eid day if need be. The Chief Justice said that the case will be heard in Karachi.
Chief Justice Chaudhry said extortion of money (bhatta) was snagged like a right in the city accompanied by frequent recoveries of mutilated bodies. CJ Chaudhry said he would hear the case even during Eid holidays if needed, as he would remain present in Karachi, adding, “Karachi is home to all and is city of everyone.”
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry was hearing the case while the bench comprises of Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani, Justice Ameer Hani Muslim and Justice Ghulam Rabbani.
Sindh government lawyer Abdul Hafeez Pirzada in his arguments said that the ratio of punishments to the accused is very low while the powers of Police and Rangers are not being utilized properly. He said that the ratio of punishments could be made better by providing security to the witnesses. Pirzada said that 300 people lost their lives after the elections in Ayub Khan Era while same kind of riots took place in Mumtaz Bhutto’s time in 1972. He further told the court that Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) came into being after Sohrab Goth incident.
Pirzada said it is important to cure the root causes of this violence. He said the situation in the city has improved after the court took suo motu notice on August 24.
The hearing of the case was adjourned till September 5.