Extortionists, killers reign over Peshawar

Police fail to check bomb attacks on houses

PESHAWAR: Bomb attacks related to extortion calls and target killings are on the rise in the provincial capital.It shows the helplessness of the police in busting the gangs behind these acts.

A source said a large number of traders, industrialists and other well-off individuals and families are living in fear and uncertainty after receiving calls for extortion. Most of the calls are made from across the border in Afghanistan. This makes it difficult for the police and the security agencies to go after these rings.

The police, however, has also miserably failed to tackle the gangs that exist in the city and carry out bomb attacks on the houses of those who refuse to pay extortion. The gangs of target killers, too, are operating under the nose of the police and the security agencies.

Those receiving extortion calls have become more worried due to the incidents of grenade attacks on the houses of people who refused to pay the extortionists. Many such people have hired gunmen, installed closed-circuit television cameras, stopped sending their children to schools and restricted attending social gatherings.

Still they do not consider themselves safe as many came under attack even after making all these arrangements. Some were killed or their houses attacked with bombs causing casualties and losses.

A dairy farm on the Pajaggi Road that was attacked a few weeks back was targeted again recently despite the fact that the owners had taken adequate measures for security. Five people were wounded in the attack including one stated to be in serious condition.

“We installed CCTV cameras, hired gunmen and restricted our movement. We have been doing this for quite a long time but everyone is still worried and scared,” said a local trader who had received calls but refused to pay the extortionists.

A well-off Peshawar citizen said people had stopped constructing buildings and buying luxury cars as they fear such a lifestyle make them visible to the extortionists and criminals. “If you have made a little wealth or a little profile, you need to be more careful due to threats from extortionists and target killers,” he explained.

Their worries increased following the killing of Haji Muhammad Haleem Jan, a respected traders’ leader who was recently target killed in his shop in the crowded Qissa Khwani bazaar.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and police had to face embarrassment over the incident as the traders launched a protest drive and demanded deployment of Rangers as they argued the police had failed to go after the extortionists and provide security to the locals.

A number of houses, schools and hujras were attacked in recent weeks, showing an increase in the trend.The killing of known individuals has also witnessed an increase in recent weeks. The assassination of Col Tariq Ghafoor as well as the retired director of an intelligence agency, a retired official of the Pakistan Air Force, Sabir Hussain Imdad, and his daughter-in-law, Dr Zainab, in Gulbahar and several other incidents have increased the sense of insecurity in Peshawar.

According to police officials, some of these cases have been worked out. However, even the working out of cases and busting of gangs has failed to bring an end to extortion-related attacks and target killings.

A police official said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa authorities have approached Islamabad to take up the issue of extortion calls from Afghanistan with the Afghan government. The KP authorities had sent a letter to the Secretary Interior on January 14 and again on February 23. The letters explained that the extortion calls from Afghanistan had been one of the major issues haunting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Along with the letters, the KP authorities sent a complete list of cellular numbers being used by the extortionists based across the border. The list also included a few local cellular phone numbers. The letters mentioned that the major gangs involved in extortion are operating from Afghanistan.