By By M Waqar Bhatti
The Mehsud tribesmen living in Sohrab Goth have denied the Karachi police’s claims that Akhtar Zaman Mehsud, the alleged Amir of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Karachi, was arrested on Sunday, October 18, following a shoot-out.
In fact, they said that Mehsud was arrested from the Super Market, Sohrab Goth, on September 14, in a raid.
The Karachi Police Chief (CCPO), Waseem Ahmed had claimed on Monday that the city police arrested Akhtar Zaman along with four of his accomplices on Sunday.
The accused were charged with being involved in a failed terrorist attack on the Kemari Oil Terminal on the night of September 14, 2009.
The Karachi police on Tuesday produced the alleged TTP Karachi Amir and one of his accomplices, Samiullah, alias Shamim before the Sindh High Court (SHC) for police remand and stated that these culprits had been arrested on Sunday, October 18 in two separate cases registered at Sohrab Goth police station.
Ironically enough, the FIRs registered at the Sohrab Goth police station including 731/09 and 736/09 under Sections 324, 353/34; 13-D and 3/4 in which police showed the arrest of Akhtar Zaman were also registered on Sunday.
However, a detailed investigation into the arrest of Akhtar Zaman, including background interviews with senior police officials and people in Sohrab Goth, revealed that the alleged TTP commander was in police custody for over a month.
A senior police official, on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Akhtar Zaman was arrested much earlier. “If we produce an accused before the court after 24 hours of his arrest, it becomes a case of habeas corpus so normally police shows the arrests of accused a day prior to their production in the court” he claimed.
He said that the police normally resorted to such a practice as it needs time to investigate the accused whether he is actually a culprit or not and to get all details of their crimes.
The official could not come up with a satisfactory reply when asked as to why they request for police remand from the court when they have already completed all the investigation and extracted all the information they require.
He, however, insisted that the persons arrested by the police were genuine terrorists and their arrest was a result of coordinated intelligence efforts.
On the other hand, many Mehsud tribesmen living in Sohrab Goth when contacted said they were not sure whether or not their arrested fellow tribesman was in fact a Taliban but claimed that area police dubbed all Mehsuds living in the area as terrorists and Taliban.
“The Khawaja Ajmer Nagri and the Sohrab Goth police often picks up poor Mehsud tribesmen, who have come here for earning their livelihood or to take shelter owing to war in South Waziristan, and threaten to book them on charges of being a TTP member if they don’t grease their palms,” they said.
Problems created by the police and other pressure groups in the area have increased to an extent that the Mehsud tribesmen have started staging protest demonstrations to draw the attention of media and common people towards their plight although they never believed in protests.
“Apart from police excesses, ethnic pressure groups are also targeting Mehsuds and other tribesmen from South and North Waziristan” Qudus Khan Barki, who belongs to Kanigurum, Sam area of South Waziristan told The News.
He said that even the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) was refusing to renew or make new CNICs of people coming from FATA and PATA (Provincially Administered Tribal Areas) while people coming from other areas of Pakistan were being facilitated by the NADRA.
“Police excesses, marginalisation on the basis of ethnicity and the attitude of the government agencies in Karachi is creating immense resentment among Mehsuds and people from other tribal areas, who are coming here for shelter and earning their bread and butter” Barki claimed.
Another notable of the Mehsud tribesmen in Sohrab Goth, Agha Jan Mehsud confirmed that their men were regularly harassed and arrested by police on the pretext of being Taliban and money was being extorted for their release.
“There are no Taliban here as they have no business here. All the people here are common Mehsud tribesmen who are living peacefully. But if such excesses continue, days are not far when they would prefer to become Taliban as a reaction” Agha Jan added.