Sectarian violence: Prominent Shia cleric, ASWJ general secretary detained

Another member of Shia community was gunned down late Saturday night

KARACHI: A prominent Shia cleric and Maulana Taj Hanfi, the general secretary of the outlawed Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamat (ASWJ), were detained by law enforcers in the aftermath of the recent targeted attacks in the city. Meanwhile, another member of the Shia community was killed later Saturday night.

After a brief lull, sectarian killings in Karachi have surged once again. A number of attacks have taken place on members of the Shia community since the beginning of Muharram, followed by the targeted killings of four ASWJ and two Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam - Fazl (JUI-F) men on Friday. While the police and Rangers have sped up their operations on the directives of the Sindh government and have arrested dozens of suspects, the recent spate of sectarian violence continued in the metropolis as one more man was killed.

The shooting

Kamran Kazmi was gunned down while another was critically wounded when armed motorcyclists targeted the Shia mourners returning from a majlis in New Rizvia Society. His funeral prayers were offered at the imambargah in Incholi Society, which was attended by a number of religious leaders besides family members, relatives and members of the community.

Rounded up

On Sunday, the police and Rangers conducted a joint predawn raid at the residence of a prominent Shia scholar, Allama Mirza Yousuf Hussain, located along with the Noor-e-Eemaan Masjid-o-Imambargah in Nazimabad locality. Hussain is also a prayer leader of the masjid and a senior leader of the Shia organisation, Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM).



Similarly, the police and Rangers conducted a raid at the Siddiq-e-Akbar Masjid located at Nagan Chowrangi, which is also considered the headquarters of the ASWJ. The law enforcers took into custody the general secretary of the banned outfit, Maulana Taj Hanfi, and shifted him to an undisclosed location. They also searched the entire masjid and reportedly recovered hate material. Hanfi is also a candidate for the upcoming NA-258 by-elections.

The law enforcers also raided the Rizvia Imambargah and detained four suspects. They seized some religious literature during the two-hour-long search.

Earlier, the police and Rangers had raided the residence of former Pakistan Peoples Party senator Faisal Raza Abidi at New Rizvia Society and taken him into custody along with weapons.

Besides the arrests and detentions of leaders and scholars, the police and Rangers apprehended nearly 40 other suspects belonging to the two sects during raids in Rizvia Society, Nazimabad, Nagan Chowrangi and New Karachi localities.

Appeasement tactics?

Interestingly, police officials, including Sindh IG Allah Dino Khawaja, additional IG Mushtaq Maher and zonal DIGs, were reluctant to comment over the current situation, particularly over the arrests of the leaders and the scholars. However, sources claimed that the leaders and scholars were arrested on the demands of rival sectarian groups. So far, the police officials concerned did not share the details about the apprehensions of Hussain and Hanfi. Cases have yet to be registered against them.

“The sudden arrests are only to calm the situation down, especially on the demands of the rival sects,” explained a former Sindh IG, Afzal Shigri, while talking to The Express Tribune. “The sectarian violence in Karachi is evidence of the loopholes of Karachi Operation.”

The former IG said that the government and the law enforcement agencies should have taken concrete steps to make the operation successful and should have remained independent of political influence. “If these leaders are arrested in the current situation, cases should also be registered regarding sectarian violence,” he said.

It has also been learnt that some high-profile targets, including Abidi, Hussain and Hanfi, have been on the hit lists of the two sectarian groups. Sources claimed that their detentions could be a tactic to provide protection to them.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 7^th, 2016.