close
Thursday March 28, 2024

DIG South rules out negligence in KPO attack

By Salis bin Perwaiz
February 21, 2023

In the aftermath of the terror attack on the Karachi Police Office, Sindh police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon ordered his force at a meeting on Monday to strictly follow directives to maintain law and order and beef up security at police installations and other important buildings across the province.

Earlier, he had a meeting with senior officers, and later they went to the Chief Minister’s House, where they briefed CM Syed Murad Ali Shah about the security steps they were taking. During the meeting, important decisions to stop terrorist activities were taken.

It was decided that vehicles plying without number plates as well as those plying on AFR plates would be confiscated immediately. The meeting also decided to launch a crackdown against plain-clothes armed men. Separately, police personnel who foiled the terrorist attack on the KPO continued to receive praise and commendation certificates from top officers.

During the attack, Head Constable Hanif Cheema reached the KPO in 20 minutes after listening to a wireless message of top officers. Without caring for his life, he not only stood side by side with the soldiers who fought the enemies in the front row but also killed a terrorist. At a ceremony, DIG Muqadas Haider said brave jawans like Hanif Cheema are the pride of our police force, which desperately needs such brave jawans who sacrifice their lives when the time comes.

All the soldiers present in the ceremony, including Hanif Cheema, said that DIG Muqadas Haider stood on the frontline and raised their morale and supervised the entire operation. They said he continued to guide them, due to which their morale was still high.

Talking to The News, Dr Shahid Rasool, Jinnah Hospital executive director, said he reviewed the medical facilities being provided to the police and Rangers personnel injured in the KPO incident. He said the best treatment was being provided to them. Moreover, injured soldiers were recovering and the condition of all the injured was said to be out of danger.

Dr Rasool said that on the day of the attack, 22 people were admitted, and eight of them had been discharged. At present, an Edhi razzakar, two policemen and five Sindh Rangers personnel were under treatment.

Meanwhile, in a media talk at the National Stadium, Karachi police chief Javed Alam Odho said: “I’m here to inspect the security and to meet with the families of our martyred, who also came to watch the match. I am thankful to the PCB for giving free entry to the martyrs’ family members.”

On a query, Odho said the investigation was very positive, the CTD would make progress soon, and whoever conspired and facilitated the attack would be put in the dock. A very quick response was seen, collectively, and the officers fought without caring for their lives, he said.

The city police chief said another policeman Abdul Latif was martyred on Sunday, and he was with the cop when he died. Meanwhile, DIG Irfan Baloch of South Range in a media talk ruled out the possibility of security negligence at KPO and said the [police personnel on security at the office fought and were martyred, and this means there was no security negligence.