Express News screengrab of senior MQM leader Farooq Sattar.
KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) submitted a petition in the Sindh High Court on Monday regarding the "unlawful arrest" of MQM worker Fahad Aziz, Express News reported.
Aziz’s relatives accompanied the MQM leaders to the court.
The MQM worker was arrested by police on February 8 and was released on bail the next day. Aziz had claimed that he was tortured during police interrogation. He was taken to Darul Sehat Hospital after having been detained by the police for about 10 hours.
Following the arrest, Aziz’s relatives, accompanied by MQM leaders, had protested the arrest outside the Karachi Press Club.
Speaking to the press today, senior MQM leader Farooq Sattar said "our first request is that this act by the police be declared unlawful and unconstitutional."
He added that a First Information Report (FIR) should be registered against AIG Shahid Hayat, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) East Pir Mohammad Shah and the SHO Shah Faisal police station for their involvement in the arrest. "They unlawfully arrested him (Aziz) and then subjected him to brutal torture," he said.
Referring to the arrests of MQM members as "witch-hunting", Sattar said the unreasonable arrests of MQM members need to stop.
Speaking at the Sindh Assembly, opposition leader Faisal Subzwari said that the attack on Aziz was the work of someone with "a sick mind".
MQM protests
MQM leader Faisal Sabzwari, while speaking to the media outside the Sindh Assembly, condemned the arrest of Aziz and said that police have admitted they were wrong by releasing Aziz on bail and suspending four of their officials.
MQM members of the Sindh Assembly staged a walkout, protesting the arrest of their party member.
Sabzwari claimed that certain elements were trying to politicise the ongoing operation against criminals. “Referring to encounters in Lyari as a counterargument to our concerns is disappointing,” he said, adding that injustice was unacceptable anywhere in the city, be it Lyari or other parts of Karachi.
COMMENTS (42)
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Good step. MQM must all important matters related to politics and administration of Sindh like powers of local governments, role of police and LEAs in Karachi, number of provincial and national assembly seats matching its population take to SC and get them settled according to constitution. As MQM holds lawful stand on these issues, SC verdicts will seal its position and non compliance of these verdicts by Sindh government will not be possible.
@Maaz: @Hairaan: @sain: @Arslan: @Imran: @Magnetto:
Dangerously ignorant! Do not let your blindness overcome sanity.
@Magnetto: yes there is unlawfull arrest , when an arrest is made without any valid reason and not substantiated by proofs , well this happened in the case of Fahad Aziz
@Aam Aadmi: i just wish that we have police recruited from permanent karaciites , men and women selected on merit and merit alone , under a police chief who is a karachiite by birth .Well this is the way all policing is done in mega cities all around the world and the name given to this police force is called metropolitan police ,where does MQM figure in it .This is internationaly practised way of policing thats all, now if people are really interested in peace they would support the way peaceful mega cities are runall around the world.
our police means police force recruited from able men and women on merit and merit alone , from permanent residents of karachi across all ethnicities , where did i mention MQM , in police recruitment. There should be a metropolitan police in karachi like we have in london , we dont want police chief like shahid hayat , who belongs to north , the reason behind this argument of local policing that the police would be aware about the real troubles of the city instead of police from all other cities and not from karachi who are most interested in collecting extortion money from innocent victims.
@Maaz: That is the problem, there should be Karachi police, because LEAs continue to harass Karachites, arrest people in the most unbecoming manner, use abusive language, casual hitting is a norm, and kill at will. There is perhaps no comparison in the number of extra judicial killings that take place in Karachi with any other part of the country. Nothing has changed. Police operate beyond the authority of law all the time. May it be the abduction of Oama Qadri a former MNA of Karchi or an ordinary worker or for that matter an apolitical Karchite, the high handedness of police continues. The way police behaves betrays their contempt for the people they are supposedly policing. Karachi’s representatives get told off by the police and barred from entering certain areas. Police extortion is at an all time high, my mother's help had to have her son released after paying 100K, her son a middle aged man with family and works at a garments factory. No other metropolis in the world has police imported for them. It has to be local policing otherwise there is no stopping to such mindless arrests as that of last night. Next elections I vote for whoever gets me local policing and no Shahid Hayat Khan coming from outside Karachi for my protection and safety
Mrs.Ahmed is having trouble understanding what does it mean by our Police, its simple place Police heads and police force purely from Karachi in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islmabad then you will understand what it means our police, its not Rocket Science.
@Maaz: Thats why Sindh should be divided into atleast 2 provinces for administration manageability. Urban Sindh can't continue to be governed by rural, crazy headed feudals.
@mrs ahmed That may be the case but that means setting aside funds to develop a NEW institution under Karachi local govt (which we all know means MQM and which will never be politically neutral) and where there is already a shortage of funds.
"okay we need our own police and not outsiders , karachi is second most populated city , in the world."
What do you mean by "our own police"? What can a policeman from karachi do that the other cant? Do they have horns on their head or something? :p And Copying others cuz its worked for them is not a justification :p
And can someone please tell this woman the world does not revolve around Karachi, 2nd most populated city IN THE WORLD...pfft.
Even the Human Rights Commission has recommended inquiry of exrajudicial arrests and killings of MQM workers, yes there is such thing as Unlawful arrest and the courts will budge , all suppport for Karachiites and MQM.
even non Punjabi COAS not safe in the hand of Punjabi dominated judiciary
@Maaz: try to understand mega cities are run by metropolitan police locally recruited and adminsiterd by directly elected mayor , go search how london , paris , new york, tehran istanbul and other cities are are goverened , they have police under mayor . okay we need our own police and not outsiders , karachi is second most populated city , in the world.
@Ayesha M
Someone tell her It's Sindh Police, not Karachi Police. It's a Provincial Institution, not a local one :p
@Imran..what about imported police extorting 220 million Rs. daily...from karachi
@Imran: what with mustafa , have you not heard a recent interview given by faisal sabzawari , mustafa still respected and loved by MQM and it is reciprocal , mustafa has gone for earning some money , as faisal bhai said he did take share like people do in all other parties, MQM , has no dearth of able , honest hard working men , i remember even mustafa kamal said many times that give a chance to MQM , you will see many more able mustafas in the ranks.
i was was wondering if a reserach be done to check if lahore, peshawer quettaare policed by outsiders , like we have that majority police are outsider , why cant we have a local police chief and this shahid hayat who belongs to north.
@Aysha M: i certainly agree with you , directly elected mayor , with control over police , health transport, education and civic ammenities and local taxes .All police recruitment be local this best untill karachi achieve this , peace is far away.
@Aysha M:
Yes, we remember that what have you done with your mayor Mustafa Kamal recently, well done.
@ali ahmed:
I am also belong to the migrants of 1947.
@ali ahmed:
If do as you say, it means that there will be extortioning in Lahore and Peshawar too.
@Hairaan: @Xnain: @Imran: My city should be governed like any other mega city of the world where policing, transport and utilities are under the mayor of the city and in most cases directly elected mayor, everything will fall in place
why no Karachi people in Lahore police or Larkana police? :/
@Aysha M:
Perhaps these comments of people rectified your proximity about police,hope you aren't going to repeat the words like that.
@Arslan: I will. A socially democartic and economically developed Karachi, my home city, my life
Taking this case straight to the court and have the plea to the competent court to look into this matter is very sane and appropriate step taken by MQM. Let the court review it and staging a protest in legislative assembly is also a rightful act to be heard.
Arresting of an innocent couldn't be an issue but brutal 3rd degree torture is definitely a problem. It's our police that does so, and MQM is complaining about the same. The suspension of four police officials involved in this case is the evidence that police has realized that they are badly exposed. Logging FIR against police chief is as justified as logging FIR of Lal Masjid against Musharraf.
Finally, local policing is followed across the world in all metropolis, unfortunately it's only Karachi where local mandate is being denied for decades. I sincerely hope that history will change it course and nature will whip the culprits its own way.
Non Local Police and Rangers are the root cause of all ill in Karachi . Proof ; Rangers have been in Karachi for three decades just taking perks and lucrative thikas of Water supply .
@Imran..why not recruitment of police forces from karachi for Lahore and Peshawar ...
Time and again government of pakistan does not learn its lesson. If you dont give rights to the common people then these sort of injustices will happen. dont forget 1947, then 1973 . .. By torturing and targeting a specific group, you will alienate them further and create the grounds for separation and further partition -- as is happening in FATA, Balochistan and Urban sindh
WE WANT LOCAL CITIZEN IN KARACHI POLICE...
When Quetta People in Quetta Police, Lahori People in Lahore Police, Peshawari People in Peshawar Police, Sindhi People in Ladkana Police.... Then WHY NOT KARACHIITES in Karachi Police...?? The only SOLUTION of Karachi is Karachiites in Karachi Police... THATS ALL
its very strange that MQM is wooried about his worker
correction dear web editor ''Faisal Sabzwari is not member of National Assembly ,but opposition leader in Sindh assembly''
@Aysha M:
Going by this logic, what is your governor doing in the Sind Governor House?
This approach would cost you a lot of lucrative post held by you folks elsewhere in Pakistan.
@Aysha M: You mean MQMiets by "Karachiwalas" ryt? Police is a provincial department btw, not managed on county level.
Police have the mandate to arrest anyone and interrogate in relation to unlawful act. I think the Karachi police moral will go down if someone released on pressure of any political party.
A tooth for a tooth
@Ayesha M Get a life
@Aysha M: Why are you hesitating to say that you want only MQMers in Karachi police to collect Bhatta freely.
the courts won't budge. They would do anything, if the involved in the incident would be considered the son of the soil. At least we are not counted as one ! et! For your mother's sake publish this. Hating Pakistan already!!!!!!
Only Karachites in Karachi police.