Mardan tops list as KP arrests 735 members of mafias

PESHAWAR: Mardan topped the list with 289 arrests of the total 735 big fish nabbed across the province during the special operation against mafias involved in land grabbing, usury and sale of ice (meth), a source told The News.

Police in some districts failed to identify and arrest not even a single member of the mafias in their areas. The force has lodged cases against 641 members of these mafias during the last almost two months after identifying 1,671 big fish. Those identified included 589 ice dealers, 475 members of the land mafia and 607 among those involved in looting millions from people through usury. As many as 141 members of the land mafia, 274 ice dealers and 248 usurers have been challaned and their cases sent to the court. A source said that 167 people have so far been arrested by the police across the province for involvement in land-grabbing. As per the statistics compiled by the Central Police Office, Peshawar, 68 people involved in land-grabbing were arrested by the police in Mardan, 30 in Peshawar, 29 in Dera Ismail Khan, 20 in Haripur, 16 in Swabi, three in Abbottabad and one in Karak till November 15. Besides, 310 people were arrested in connection with sale of ice. Among those held for selling ice, 95 were arrested in Mardan, 57 in Nowshera, 50 in Karak,24 in Swat, 20 in Abbottabad, 19 in Buner, 11 each in Haripur and Peshawar, eight in Bannu, six in Lakki Marwat, five in Swabi, three in Charsadda and one in Kohat. During actions against the mafias involved in looting people through usury, police have arrested 258 people. As per the list compiled by the Central Police Office, 126 were arrested by the police on charges of usury in Mardan, 54 in Bannu, 24 in Swabi, 14 in Abbottabad, 12 in Nowshera, eight in Charsadda, six each in Swat and Lakki Marwat and two each in Haripur, Dera Ismail Khan, Peshawar and Kohat. The force in mid-September launched a crackdown on mafias involved in land-grabbing, usury and selling ice and other drugs after which all the regional police officers (RPOs) and district police officers (DPOs) were directed to compile lists of the criminals involved in these crimes in their areas. They were directed to submit fortnightly report of their progress to the Central Police Office.

The inspector general of police Mohammad Naeem Khan has said that all the RPOs and DPOs have been directed to go after these mafias aggressively so that the people suffering at their hands can be provided relief. Many have been arrested in different districts while lists of more are being compiled after checking the record of the suspects through various sources, an official said. “The personal files of 390 land-grabbers, 450 ice dealers and 362 people involved in usury have been made till the end of November 15,” the spokesman for KP Police Shahzada Kokab Farooq told The News. He added that target identified for preventive action included 87 members of land mafia, 170 ice dealers and 50 usurers. There have been several complaints that many land mafias supported by influential people and escorted by gunmenare involved in occupying the land of the innocent people who have no access to the government and police in different districts of the province. In many cases, the criminals demand extortion money from the owners of the land in urban, suburban and rural areas. Some of the professional land-grabbers take advantage of small mistakes in the transfer of inherited property with the connivance of the local staff of the revenue department and demand money from the owners.

On the other hand, the number of addicts of ice has increased in the last few years with more boys and girls consuming the drug. The drug is more expensive than heroin and many consume it during parties and at hostels and other places regularly. Besides, some resourceful people giving loans to the needy on high rate of interest make millions of rupees through usury.