The battle of Karachi

We have a volatile and potentially dangerous situation at hand which could draw in many elements to create political chaos. The question of Sindh and the allegations of victimisation of the province come in. So too do corruption, crime and terrorism and their possible links with political elements. In a startling development the Federal Anti-Corruption Court has issued non-bailable arrest warrants against former prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and former federal minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim – of the PPP. Both are accused of massive corruption in the handling of funds belonging to the Trade Development Authority. As grave is the arrest of Dr Asim Hussain, who is currently serving as the head of the HEC in Sindh. Presented by the Rangers before an ATC, he was charged not with corruption, as had been originally assumed at the time of his arrest, but with helping to finance terror. Dr Hussain, a former adviser to the PM on petroleum and national resources, is a close aide to Asif Ali Zardari. This somewhat complicates the situation with speculation rife that the arrest of Zardari could follow. There are various strands to the latest developments. A statement by the chief of army staff that abettors of terrorism will not be spared is being linked to the political arrests. There is in the background also the case of Uzair Baloch, a Lyari gangster arrested some months ago, who has reportedly already named Zardari in connection with murder cases.
The PPP has cried foul play. Its key leaders have questioned the timing of the arrests and have delivered the starkest warning to the government, promising a war if any action is taken against the PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari. It has castigated the PML-N government for posing to be caught unawares. The most ridiculous-sounding stance appears to be the one from the Sindh chief minister – the infamously helpless captain of the Karachi operation – who has accused the Rangers of overstepping boundaries by failing to inform him about their actions. The situation is ironic, after the PPP silence over the claims of the MQM that it is being unfairly targeted in the Karachi operation. Just days ago the PPP had opposed the idea of a monitoring body to look into allegations and cases of rights’ violations during the Rangers’ actions in Karachi. The claim that Dr Hussain was indicted without investigation may be true, but no one is willing to buy the PPP line. The reason is simple: in power in Sindh for the last eight years, the PPP could have easily cleaned up its own act and done much to rid the city of crime and corruption. No action was taken until the federal government and the army themselves found ways to push for action – a move that was welcomed by the PPP among other political actors whose knack for cheerleading hardly left any room for a fruitful debate and an objective assessment of the operation. The PPP appears to have been left with no allies after opposing the MQM’s demands, even though it was the PPP itself that first raised concerns over the Rangers operation when the headquarters of the Sindh Property Control Board were raided. Then the party stepped back from its position and till only last week acted as the most steadfast supporter of the Karachi operation.
If the PPP felt it would be exempt from the operation, it was mistaken. When the MQM cried wolf, the PPP was not there to support it. Now, when the PPP is crying wolf, it may not get political sympathy. Then, in the case of either party there’s hardly any telling when the fierceness of protests will give way to the softness of acquiescence or outright subservience. And there remains the most defining truth about Karachi politics – that until recently the city had been ruled and devastated by a coalition of crime and corruption under the PPP and the MQM that suffocated life without mercy. We have here a very delicate, and potentially volatile, situation. The military establishment may now be standing face to face with two major political parties in Sindh. The MQM, as we already know, has made clear its problems with the paramilitary force. The PPP now feels the same. For how long is difficult to tell. The outcome for Karachi and Sindh is a crucial one. PPP leaders have already brought the Sindh card out of the stack and asked why corruption in other provinces is not being tackled on the same level. While the people of Karachi have generally welcomed recent actions to improve law and order, the new political dimensions that have entered the battlefield may create a much higher tempo of uncertainty and instability. Already, in interior Sindh, voices are being raised against the military involvement in the province. We have on the one hand a desperate need to curb corruption, crime and terrorism. And then we have all the political complications that go with this. We need fair play and an even hand. But we also need stability, the involvement of the civilian political leadership and an effort to avoid creating strife in a country that desperately needs calm.