IGP orders solid steps to curb street crime

Karachi 

Issuing directives indicative of his priorities, the newly appointed Sindh police chief, Allah Dino Khawaja, has ordered solid steps to overcome street crime in Karachi, which has seen a significant rise in muggings despite a targeted operation continuing into its third year. 

In the first two years of the operation between September 2013 and September 2015, 19,000 more incidents of street crime were reported in the metropolis. In the two years before action started (2011-2013), 98,812 street crime incidents had occurred in Karachi. However, the number spiked to 117,636 in the following two years.

Similarly, the number of snatched mobile phones rose from 20,899 in the two years before the crackdown to 29,109 in the following two years, showing an increase of 39 percent.

The gravity of the situation is not lost on Inspector General of Police Khawaja, who, while chairing a meeting at Central Police Office on Wednesday, directed the Karachi police to ensure special deployments in high-crime areas and make the snap-checking system effective.

Considering a suggestion made by police officials for constituting an anti-mobile phone snatching and theft unit, he said effective and result-oriented recommendations should be furnished to him immediately.

Khawaja, who has replaced Ghulam Hyder Jamali after the latter’s removal over allegations he made illegal appointments and was allegedly involved in irregularities in the distribution of investigation funds, further directed that law and order should be improved by using the available resources and manpower in a better way. 

He said officials who performed their duties with honestly and responsibility would get full support, but dishonesty and negligence in the line of duty would never be tolerated. He told the police to fulfil their responsibilities through teamwork and to take action against criminals without any bias and partiality. 

“Coordination with community and other organisations should be strengthened and made effective so as to rid society of crimes.”

The IGP said meetings should be arranged with civil society members on a regular basis, and steps should also be taken to eliminate organised crimes, Iranian petrol smuggling, and drug and gambling dens. 

He warned that departmental action would be taken against those station house officers who failed to stop organised and heinous crimes in their areas.

The IGP said that extraordinary security should be ensured to protect the life and property of citizens. He also ordered effective security measures s at mosques, Imambargahs, worship places of the minorities, important installations, educational insinuations and other public places.

The meeting was attended by Karachi’s additional IGP, the DIG Admin, the CID DIG, zonal DIGs, all district SPs, SSP investigation, th DIG Headquarters and the AIG Operation Sindh.

A day earlier during a meeting with a five-member delegation of the Federation of Pakistan chamber of commerce and Industry at the Central Police Office, Khawaja had vowed that the so-called traditional “Thana culture” would be eliminated and all police stations transformed into model police stations.

Transfers/postings

The Central Police Office announced some transfers and postings in the Sindh Police.

According to a notification, Dr Samiullah Soomro, who had been awaiting posting, has been made SP Saddar Division, Karachi, Malik Muhammad Ahsan has been appointed SP Security-I, Karachi, Asif Razak Abbasi, who was SP AIG Estate Management CPO, is now SP Baldia Division, Karachi. 

Capt (retd) Mazher Iqbal, ASP SDPO Qasimabad District, Hyderabad, has been made SDPO Sehwan District, Jamshoro, while Zia Muhammad Baloch, DSP who had been awaiting posting, is now DSP Investigation-II East Zone, Karachi.

Munir Ahmed Ursani, a DSP had been awaiting posting, has been appointed SDPO Keamari, Karachi, DSP Syed Badar Ali Shah has been posted as SDPO Surjani, Karachi, and DSP ACLC Karachi Muhammad Sabir is now SDPO Gulberg Karachi.