'No pangs for gangs in Lyari'

Once the bastion of Uzair Baloch, city’s oldest neighbourhood shudders as it recalls his 'reign of terror'

KARACHI:

Once, Lyari was known for its multi-ethnic, cultural harmony - until gangs began making inroads in one of Karachi's oldest areas. Since then, it has seen a parade of gangsters rise and fall: Rehman Dakait, Arshad Pappu, Baba Ladla - and Uzair Jan Baloch.

At the height of its gang wars, countless bodies piled up in Lyari. With the deaths of some gang leaders and the arrests of others, though, the violence calmed down in recent years. But now, Uzair is back in the spotlight.

As political parties push competing claims about the joint investigation team report on Uzair, made public by the Sindh government earlier this week, Lyari residents are wondering what it means for them. Uzair, after all, was Lyari's self-styled don - the gangster who had challenged the corridors of power and set up his own fiefdom in the restive neighbourhood.

But that ended when he was arrested in 2016. And today, Lyari's residents recall how Uzair, a signature Sindhi cap atop his smiling face, had brought a new reputation to the locality, turning it into the neighbourhood of gangsters, drug lords and killers.

"Before, Lyari was known as the home of sportsmen. It was known as an abode of political workers. It was known as a place where brave, welcoming people lived," said Abu Bakr Baloch, a Lyari resident, bitterly.

But, he believed, at least the gangster would not be able to come back and take control of the area again. "People are happy - he will never be released. Lyari is normal without Uzair."

In Abu Bakr's eyes, the bad name brought to the neighbourhood by Uzair and his ilk had been devastating for those who dwelt there. Given the area's repute, he explained, few of those with an address in Lyari were able to get a decent job.

"And not all residents were part of the Peoples Amn Committee (PAC), so it was difficult for them to survive," he added, referring to the Pakistan Peoples Party-affiliated organisation headed by Uzair, initially formed by Rehman Dakait for social work but later declared a banned outfit.

For Muhammad Iqbal, another resident of the area, it was the PAC and the gangs that ruined Lyari. "This locality produced philanthropists, sportsmen, politicians and journalists. It did not just produce Uzair or Baba Ladla," he pointed out.

Asked about the local response to the revelations of the JIT report, which sheds light on scores of murders carried out by Uzair, resident Kashif Hussain said that people were just glad there was little chance of him making his way back there. "If he returned, he would bring a new wave of terror with him," he remarked.

"Uzair was only a 'hero' when his men had guns in their hands. He was not a hero because of his achievements, but only because of his gang," he explained, adding that countless families had left Lyari for good during his reign of terror. "Even business activities shifted away from here."

However, another resident, Abdul Mannan, had a different view of the man. "He did not create the gangs, they were there even before he was born," he pointed out. "In fact, he built a new image of Lyari, which had been ignored by politicians and policy-makers. At least two universities were built here and several development projects initiated when he was in power."

The 'real' culprits?

Despite Uzair's confessions for an endless list of crimes, some from Lyari, who watched his rise to power as well as his downfall, insisted that the 'real' culprits had still not been traced. In their view, he and his gang - while by no means innocent - had been used for political gains.

"Much of his gang is still alive and at large, with strong connections within Lyari and other parts of the city," stated Shakeel Baloch, who lives in the area, reiterating that the residents who had been considered Uzair's supporters were pleased he would not return.

"And what about the politicians who openly supported Uzair at the time?" he questioned. "All the political parties wanted him to join them back then, but no one will own him now," he laughed.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 10^th, 2020.