SC orders installation of new CCTV cameras in Karachi

KARACHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the chief secretary to ensure that funds were made available for the purchase of high-powered new closed-circuit cameras and submit report regarding steps being taken by the government to save the lives and properties of the residents of Karachi at large.

Hearing Karachi law and order suo moto implementation proceedings and political interference and influence in the police, SC’s five-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Anwar

Zaheer Jamali, took exception to the installation of outdated CCTV cameras in the city.  The court observed that the report submitted by the chief secretary reflected that different agencies, including the provincial government, had installed CCTV cameras, but the cameras installed by Sindh Police were not functional for years together. The report mentioned that out of 820 CCTV cameras of 2 megapixel only 17 are functional. 

Chief Secretary Siddique Memon submitted that the cameras were installed at the recommendation of technical evaluation committee but it did not recommend maintenance after installation and therefore they are not functional for the last several years.

The court observed that it was a pathetic state of affairs. The court observed that the government was now deciding to maintain/repair these cameras, which according to the IG Police cannot identify the people as they do not have the capability besides they have very poor vision. 

The court observed that spending any amount on maintenance of these CCTV cameras would be a sheer waste of public money. Justice Khilji Arif Hussain took exception to non-allocation of funds for installation of updated CCTV cameras and observed that billions of rupees had been spent on installation of cameras in Islamabad, but nothing had been given for such purpose in Karachi, inquiring from the interior secretary whether there was any difference in the blood of the people living in Karachi and Islamabad.

The court observed that the law and order situation in Karachi was worse than that in Islamabad, and proper security arrangements should have been made in this regard.

Justice Amir Hani Muslim observed that the court was concerned about the lives of the people, and the court would take action against those who ordered purchase of such outdated cameras for installation in the city. 

Referring to the funds provided to the Sindh police by the government, the IG of Sindh, A. D. Khawaja, submitted that funds made available were meant only for the purpose of providing better transport, arms and ammunition to the police force and not for the purpose of upgradation/installation or maintenance of the CCTV cameras.

He submitted that the force under his command lacked technical skills required for the purpose of purchase of CCTV cameras therefore it would be appropriate that proper working shall be made by the Sindh government to meet the challenges in this regard either by hiring services of private enterprises or by inducting skilled staff in the police force. The court directed the chief secretary to ensure that funds were made available for the purchase of high-powered new CCTV cameras.

Regarding the state of affairs of Madadgar helpline service of the police, the court observed that Madadgar-15, which was meant for immediate response to the public complaints, had failed to deliver, and there seemed to be no accountability.

The court was informed that Madadgar-15 was supervised by the Special Security Unit (SSU).  

The court inquired from the chief secretary why Madadgar-15, which is a technical wing, had been placed under the supervision of the SSU when this wing had no nexus with the field force for which he could not offer any plausible explanation. 

The chief secretary submitted that the provincial government would have no objection if Madadgar-15 was placed under the command of the capital city police Karachi and the additional IG of Karachi with the assistance of technical staff if it would make it effective. 

The court, with the consent of the chief secretary of Sindh and the IG of Police, ordered that Madadgar-15 shall be part of Karachi police under the command of the additional IG of Karachi, who in turn shall make it effective by upgrading it and providing technical staff to improve its working. 

The court directed the chief secretary to issue a notification in this regard forthwith.

Regarding the inquiry report on the release of four convicts on parole, the advocate-general of Sindh sought one week’s time to submit the inquiry report. 

The court on a previous hearing was informed that a committee comprising a senior member of the board of revenue, additional secretary, home department, and additional secretary, services, had been constituted by the provincial government who shall look into the conduct of the former director of parole, Saleem Raza Abbasi, as well as other members of the parole committee who had prima facie acted in a negligent manner in recommending release of four convicts on parole. 

The court also directed the advocate-general of Sindh and the chief secretary to submit further detailed report within two  weeks providing particulars of all those persons who had been released by Sindh government on parole and the report should have details of all the accused/convicts who had escaped from different jails of Sindh during the same period.

The court also expressed dissatisfaction over the progress report filed by the chief secretary regarding compliance of the court directives issued in Karachi law and order’s suo moto proceedings and observed that the provincial government’s report were evasive as no concrete steps had been taken by the Sindh government to address the issues detailed in the judgment. 

The court inquired from the chief secretary about the steps taken by the provincial government in raising the police force.  The chief secretary informed the court that the Sindh government had sanctioned 20,000 vacancies of police personnel. According to him, these police personnel were being recruited through proper and transparent procedure by inviting applications through a public notice. 

He submitted that advertisements in this regard had also appeared in the print media. 

The IG of Sindh submitted that the recruitment process in Karachi did start, but on account of an administrative ban imposed by the Sindh government, it had been put in abeyance. However, the chief secretary disputed that and stated that the administrative ban was not extended to cover the recruitment process in Sindh police.

The IG of Sindh submitted that after clarification by the chief secretary in the court, the recruitment process of the police personnel shall be completed within one month in Karachi whereas the recruitment process outside Karachi Zone shall be completed within three months.  

The court directed the IG of Sindh to complete the aforesaid recruitment process in Sindh police, which was the need of the hour, in the shortest possible time on merit and in a transparent manner. 

The chief secretary also gave assurance that the Sindh government shall facilitate the IG of Sindh to complete the proposed recruitment in Sindh Police.

Regarding provision of 3G/4G locators and geo-fencing facility to Sindh police, the attorney-general of Pakistan assured that in order to address the grievances of the law-enforcing agencies in Sindh in the context of geo-fencing and GSM locators etc., a high-level meeting would be arranged so that these issues and other ancillary issues were decided amicably between the federal and provincial agencies and the two governments. 

The court observed that such issues should not come to the court but should be resolved by the provincial and federal governments. 

The AGP sought two weeks’ time for doing such an exercise. 

The court, granting time, adjourned the hearing of the case till August 11. 

On police officers negligence in the Chief Justice of Sindh High Court’s son’s kidnapping case, the court directed the secretary of Establishment to submit departmental inquiry report against the senior police officers, including former SSP of South, with regard to their negligence in the Owais Ali Shah kidnapping case. The fact-finding inquiry had earlier been conducted against senior police officers, former SSP of South, Dr. Farooq Ahmed, SP Dr. Asad Ejaz, ASP Mohammad Tariq Nawaz and DSP Farah Ambreen, by the Chairman of Anti-Corruption, Ghulam Qadir Thebo, and show-cause notices were issued to them.