And this, our Mayor

Karachi drivers are sick of four-wheel-drive vehicles which are almost never checked by the police or the Rangers

Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar has issued an apology on behalf of his son, Taimur Wasim, who, along with his guard, had allegedly assaulted a young man on New Year’s Eve. On January 3, a first information report (FIR) was registered against Akhtar’s son, Taimur Wasim, and his personal guard at the Darakhshan Police Station for allegedly assaulting Hasnain Haider in Defence Phase 8 on December 31.

The confrontation began on New Year’s Eve when the guard accompanying Taimur had allegedly resorted to aerial firing, prompting Haider to inquire why he was doing so. In response, the guard and the mayor’s son allegedly beat him up. “When they were asked to stop firing, they beat me up and even threatened to kill me,” Hasnain said in the FIR.

The complainant said he was waiting for other friends at a petrol pump in Phase 8 of DHA when two Vigo vehicles arrived there at around 10pm on December 31. Around eight to 10 persons including security guards were travelling in the vehicles. They allegedly resorted to aerial firing, the complainant said, adding that when he inquired about the gunfire and abusive language, they again resorted to firing.

He said that he and his friends left the place in their car but were intercepted by the two vehicles near Hamza Mosque, which is a short distance away. After stopping their car, the guards disembarked from their vehicles along with Taimur Wasim who bragged that he was the son of Karachi Mayor. The complainant said he was beaten up by the guards and Taimur who allegedly used a pistol to hit him. The guards also smashed the windowpanes of the car. They attempted to force him to sit in their vehicle, he claimed, but on the resistance of his friends, the suspects hurled threats and abuse at them before rushing away.

Hasnain immediately drove to Darakhshan Police Station to register the case where he was asked to have his medical examination done first. He had his medical checkup for a wound he had sustained during the altercation. The complainant claimed that the police were first reluctant to register the case, but then they lodged the FIR. This is clear from the date of the FIR – registered on January 3 for an incident that took place on December 31.

Mahboob Abbasi, who is the victim’s father, later told the media that the Karachi Mayor phoned him only after the FIR was lodged and protesters had gathered outside the press club. It was after a hue and cry was raised that the police registered the case.

Abbasi said later Wasim Akhtar along with his son, Taimur Wasim, had visited his residence in Clifton, where MPA Nusrat Abbasi, former bureaucrat Dr Shafqat Abbasi and senior politicians including Syed Ghulam Shah and Asif Baladi were also present. Abbasi said Akhtar, while issuing his apology, insisted that such an incident should never have happened.

While this is all well and good, several questions do arise from this incident. To begin with, why is the Mayor’s son parading around the city in a convoy of official vehicles accompanied by government paid guards? This from a Mayor who supposedly has no budget. What gives this young man the right to order the attack on innocent citizens and why isn’t the government taking any notice of this?

Let us be fair. The only reason Hasnain Haider was able to register the complaint was because of his family’s own political connections.

The problem, of course, has to do more than with the Mayor’s son. It has to do with the police. Why was the FIR registered so late? What action has the police chief taken against the SHO?

Karachi drivers are sick of four-wheel drive vehicles which are almost never checked by either the police or the Rangers. In most instances, the drivers force other vehicles off the roads or out of their way and their guards sitting in the back, usually with unregistered arms and ammunition, threaten anyone who disobeys.

The police seem helpless. Despite loud claims, it cannot stop the rapid proliferation of such vehicles, usually roaming the streets sans proper number plates and with tinted glasses. Possibly because most senior police officials, including the DIG Traffic, are also guilty of the same practice. So who then will bell the cat?

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6^th, 2020.

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