The Muttahida Qaumi Movement – Pakistan’s (MQM-P) elected representatives on Friday expressed deep concern over the rising incidents of street crime in Karachi.
In a joint statement, they said the police and p rovincial administration have failed to control the criminals involved in snatching, theft, and robbery incidents in the city.
They noted that the citizens of Karachi are losing goods worth millions of rupees daily, with record-breaking incidents occurring in recent months, especially during the holy month of Ramazan.
“The criminals have made it their hobby to not only steal property but also to take lives without any remorse. An alarming increase in motorcycle, car, and mobile phone thefts and snatching incidents raises significant questions about the performance of the police and administration.”
The MQM-P leaders criticised the decision to hand over the metropolitan city to police officers from distant areas of Sindh, calling it a biased act. They argued that like other cities, it's essential to establish a local policing system in Karachi.
They termed the Sindh government “incompetent and biased”, accusing it of turning “Pakistan's largest city into a haven for professional thieves and robbers”.
They questioned the government's intentions, asking if the citizens were deliberately left at the mercy of thieves and robbers, whether the government was also taking commissions from thieves and robbers after contractors, and if this was how the city that paid the highest taxes in the world was treated.
They demanded that the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, and Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori take notice of the increased street crime in Karachi, “show mercy to the citizens, ensure their safety, and relieve them from this financial, physical, and mental distress”.