Rising crimes in Islamabad: Safe City covers only 30 percent of ICT says IGP

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Interior on Tuesday expressed grave concern over the rising incidents of law and order, including theft, robbery and other crimes in the federal capital and said that the relevant agencies should be properly mobilised to provide security.

The committee met under the chairmanship of Senator Mohsin Aziz on Tuesday and discussed the steps taken by the Islamabad Police to maintain law and order and curb crimes in the federal capital.

The incident of robbery at the residence of Senator Nuzhat Sadiq in F-10 Sector and unprofessional behavior of the police over another theft incident in Sector G-13 of Islamabad and implementation of the recommendations of the Standing Committee were reviewed during the meeting.

About the robbery at the residence of Senator Nuzhat Sadiq, she said that five to six persons entered the house in a white car at around 1.30 pm. Her husband along with servants were taken hostage and robbed, she said. Sadiq said several robberies have taken place in Sector F-10 in the last few days, which was a matter of grave concern, adding that she called helpline 15 but the number was also busy and no one called back from 15.

The chairman said that everyone was worried about the deteriorating law and order situation in the capital and the incidents of theft, robbery, murder and abuse in the posh areas of Islamabad have become a question mark on the performance of concerned agencies.

The Inspector General, Islamabad Police, Qazi Jameelur Rehman, informed the committee that things were changing very fast and countless groups and new gangs had sprung up, adding that the police department was implementing new reforms to maintain law and order.

Jameel said that systems were being set up for immediate action, trackers were being installed on police vehicles and bikes, while the number of mobile vehicles were also being increased.

He said the Safe City project that was completed in 2018 has around 1,900 cameras of which only 96 percent cameras were in working condition. However, as Islamabad was growing very fast, only 30 percent coverage was being provided with the existing cameras, Qazi Jameel said. He said plans for installation of 1,900 more cameras was sent to ensure better security and safety of the citizens.

The parliamentary panel was informed that the police has 49 vehicles and 130 motorcycles for patrolling and steps were being taken against policemen for harassing the general public. He said the department would procure smart vehicles and consultations were also being held with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh to collect data of criminal people.

About the incidents of aerial firing and fireworks in Sector G-9 of Islamabad, Mohsin Aziz said that strict action should be taken against the culprits to control them.

Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri, Saifullah Abro, Rana Maqbool Ahmed, Shahadat Awan, Muhammad Talha Mahmood, Fauzia Arshad, Dilawar Khan and Nuzhat Sadiq, IG Islamabad

Police Qazi Jameelur Rehman, DIG Operation Islamabad, DIG Safe City, Joint Secretary Ministry of Interior, DC Islamabad Hamza Shafqaat and other senior officials attended the meeting.