The blowback of the politicisation of the Karachi operation has now reached its apex. The decision by the centre to extend the special powers of the Rangers in Sindh for another two months, and reject the provincial government’s proposal limiting what spheres the paramilitary force can act in, has set off a clear-cut battle between the two governments. With this decision, it seems the underlying issue of political arrests will not be resolved. This week, Dr Asim’s appearance in the Anti-Terrorism Court became even more complicated after the Sindh police told the court that there was no evidence against him. The ATC judge, though, disagreed and decided to keep Dr Asim in jail and charged him under anti-terrorism clauses. This case lies at the core of the entire battle. It has been made so high profile in nature that neither side can back away. The Sindh government sees it as a necessity to protect one of its key leaders, or else run the risk of other leaders being trapped in a similar net of accusations. The case also shows that the Rangers and the Sindh police are poles apart in terms of how they are approaching the Karachi operation.
The interior ministry insists that the powers available to the Rangers cannot be clipped under the terms of Section 147 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997. The federal government has also justified the decision on the grounds that it is spending Rs9 billion a year on the Rangers in Karachi. This situation only raises one question: has the federal government transgressed its mandate? Senior PPP leaders have called the action a violation of the constitution. The decision is certainly not the wisest political move in an already polarised context. Moreover, why has the federal government not fulfilled its promise of creating a monitoring committee to oversee the Karachi operation? The politicisation of the Rangers operation could have easily been avoided through such a mechanism. The entire incident of the Rangers and the Sindh government also raises a few other questions. How much control do provincial governments really have when they exercise the ‘action in aid of civil power’ clause? Do they have any power to restrict security forces to certain kinds of action? And does the provincial assembly have any right to decide what direction the Karachi operation will take? The federal government seems to think not. The situation could make the confrontation worse. The PPP has called a meeting of their top leaders this week; there are also chances of the PPP and the MQM joining hands once again – especially given the ATC order to issue non-bailable warrants for 25 MQM leaders, including its proposed mayor, for facilitating provocative speech.
The Karachi operation has now become fully immersed in the quagmire of politics. The Sindh government, if it wants to continue to stand by its stance, has two options: challenge the federal government decision in the courts or in the realm of legalities within Section 147 itself. Political problems should ideally be solved through politics, but Karachi is no ordinary city. The interior ministry’s decision, the confrontation over Dr Asim and the MQM arrest warrants mean the situation is likely to get much worse before sanity prevails. This whole battle has the potential to turn into a legal battle which could rumble on for months. A political solution has to be found soon, and both sides need to give some way. Sensible handling of the situation by the federal government, without resort to the hysterics put on by the interior minister in the past, would be welcome. In the same way, the Sindh government needs to show it is indeed an impartial force and able to act in favour of the province and its people, instead of picking and choosing causes to be concerned over.