28 hurt in Karachi JI Kashmir rally attack

KARACHI: In the ongoing wave of terrorism, the economic hub of Pakistan, Karachi, once again came under grenade attacks on Wednesday. In two different incidents, terrorists targeted Jamaat-e-Islami Kashmir rally in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and later an estate agency in Korangi locality. An Indian RAW-funded separatist group has claimed responsibility for both the attacks.

At least 28 people were injured when terrorists lobbed a hand grenade on Jamaat-e-Islami’s ‘Youm-e-Istehsal-e-Kashmir’ rally in Karachi’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal. The rally was organized by Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), the country’s mainstream religio-political party, in connection with the first anniversary of India’s revoking Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.

“Apparently, a RAW funded separatist group of Sindh might have been behind the attacks,” said District East SSP Sajid Amir Saduzai while talking to The News. “But nothing could be said with certainty unless the investigation is completed and the terrorists are arrested.”

According to police, unidentified motorcyclists hurled the grenade towards the participants of the Kashmir’s Youm-e-Istehsal rally. The incident took place nearthe Baitul Mukarram Masjid on the main University Road within the limits of Aziz Bhatti police station. The rally was attacked when the JI Karachi chapter chief Hafiz Naeem was addressing the participants.

Following the explosion, panic and fear gripped the participants of the rally who started running here and there. A heavy contingent of the law enforcers including police and Rangers reached the blast site and cordoned off the locality. Rescuers from different welfare associations also rushed the injured to casualty wards of different hospitals, particularly the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center. After the initial pause, the rally continued after the attack.

Senior police officials of the Karachi Police and the Counter-Terrorism Department of the Sindh Police, including Additional IG Karachi Ghulam Nabi Memon and CTD’s senior counter-terrorism expert Raja Umer Khattab, also visited the blast site and inquired about the incident.

“Both, Korangi’s Nasir Colony and University Road, attacks are the result of grenade attacks and have resemblance with each other, suggesting that the same group could have been behind both the attacks,” says CTD’s counter-terrorism expert Raja Umer Khattab. “It seems that the hostile intelligence agency used the local tentacles.” According to the bomb disposal experts, they recovered the lever of a hand grenade which establishes that the terrorists used hand grenades. Sources said that similar grenades were earlier used in the terror activities in Karachi, including the attacks on the Rangers. This suggests that the same group of terrorists could have been behind the attacks.

On the other hand, Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army, the separatist group, has claimed that responsibility of the attack on the JI’s rally in Karachi on their social media account.

The second attack took place at an estate agency in Korangi’s Nasir Jump area. The SSP East, Sajid Amir Saduzai, told The News that the owner of the state agency was not present at the premises at the time of the attack, but three of his partners were injured in the attack. “Two motorcyclists hurled a hand grenade at the agency,” said SSP East Saduzai while talking to The News. “In both attacks – JI rally and Korangi’s Nasir Colony estate agency – the terrorists used similar type of hand grenades.” The officer said that though the SRA has claimed responsibility of the estate agency attack but he doubted it, and feels the attack on the estate agency could be the fallout of a property dispute and the victims of the estate agency have also nominated some suspects in the FIR.

Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi Ameer Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman said the attack on the JI’s rally of solidarity with Kashmir should be considered as an attack on Pakistan and demanded the government and law enforcement agencies to arrest the attackers. He was addressing at a press conference at Idara Noor-e-Haq, the JI secretariat. He said that 28 party workers were injured in the attack and three of them were in serious condition. Most of them are elders, youth and children, he said.

“The RAW agents attacked the rally in Karachi in broad daylight, which proves the incompetence of the government,” Rehman said. He said that the people of Karachi could not be demoralized by such attacks and they would continue supporting the Kashmir cause.

The JI Chief, Senator Sirajul Haq, said his party activists would not cower to “cowardly” attacks. He blamed Indian agents responsible for the attack, who could not digest the expression of solidarity with Kashmiris.