News
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Suo motu on Karachi killingsFive-member SC bench to start hearing from tomorrow
By Hasnaat Malik
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice (CJ) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has constituted a five-member bench, headed by himself and comprising Justice Shakirullah Jan, Justice Nasirul Mulk, Justice Tariq Pervez and Justice Ghulam Rabbani, for hearing a suo motu case regarding worsening law and order situation in Karachi from tomorrow (Friday).
The court directed the chief secretary and Sindh inspector general of police to submit detailed report on target killings, which have been taking place in Karachi for the last several months.
They were also asked to provide the number of persons who were killed/injured in these incidents, and submit record copies of daily situation reports duly prepared by the concerned police officers for their perusal.
The court issued a notice to the attorney general to appear and submit a comprehensive report on the matter.
The court observed that the report should be based on the material to substantiate the same, which should be collected from the federal and provincial law-enforcement and intelligence agencies. Supreme Court Bar Association president as well as Sindh High Court Bar Association president were directed to appear in person to assist the court on Friday (tomorrow).
“I have gone through the above noted facts, reported in print media, flashed in electronic media, perusal whereof presents a bleak/dismal picture of bloodshed, arson, kidnapping/abduction for ransom, widespread violence, extortion of money (Bhatta) from traders, which prima facie are violative of Article 9, 14, 15, 18 and 24 of the constitution.
Prima facie, the executive has failed to protect the life, liberty, dignity, property and freedom of the general public, as it is manifested in the above note/reports. “Therefore, let this note be converted into a petition under Article 184(3) of the constitution,” the CJP said in his suo motu order.
It is relevant to mention here that the CJ had taken notice of situation in Karachi on a statement made by Allama Tahirul Qadri, which appeared in a section of media calling for action on situation in Karachi.
CDs/DVD were received from different channels by the Supreme Court (SC) and the SC office submitted a detailed note that common problems, pointed out in the attached copies of press clippings of Al Akhbar, Daily Express, News, Nawa-i-waqt, Jang, Daily Times, Frontier Post, Nation, Sahafat, Aaj ki Awaz and CDs/DVDs provided by Express, GEO, SAMA, PTV, AAJ, Dunya and Dawn News Channels) presently being faced by the residents of Karachi, are that their lives and properties are not safe; frequent killings of innocent citizens have made their lives miserable; citizens are being abducted for ransom; beheaded dead bodies, with tied arms and legs, wrapped in sacks, are being recovered in large numbers daily; street crime is in abundance; different groups are involved in target killings; police and Rangers are watching the spilling of blood merely as spectators; and the top government functionaries are callously viewing the situation with no inclination to maintain writ of the state. Different views have been expressed by observers, analysts and anchormen about causes of this catastrophe.
One view is that various groups like MQM, PPP and ANP, in order to establish their hegemony, resort to clashes and target killings, while another view attributes interference of foreign powers like America, Israel and India in the affairs of the country’s economic hub that has led to the creation of this tragic situation. Similarly, some say that it is due to terrorism, while according to some the situation is aggravating due to ethnic and sectarian frictions.
There are some who opine that Karachi being hub of economic, social, political and cultural activities is under fire because the enemies of Pakistan want to prove that Pakistan is a failed state despite being a nuclear power.
Recovery of large number of dead bodies daily; frequency of street crime; and brutality and heinousness of offences; passivity of government functionaries; involvement of gangs in money extortion; nefarious and bloody activities of land mafia and drug mafia, damage to valuable properties of the citizens; shifting of capital from Pakistan to Malaysia and Bangladesh (as reported in some news clippings), transfer of dead bodies from Karachi to the places of their origin in different parts of the country leading to stir and harassment in the minds of people of these areas, provide substantial evidence that Karachi has reached the verge of destruction that has caused threat to the very stability of Pakistan.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk