Sindh govt vows to wipe out dacoit culture

Opposition flays provincial authorities for failing to eliminate dacoit gangs in riverine areas

KARACHI:

The PPP-led provincial government came under fire from the opposition over failing to suppress dacoits in the forests along the banks of Indus River.

Law and order situation, especially kidnappings for ransom and frequent attacks on police by the outlaws dominated the stormy Sindh Assembly session on Monday. Both the government and opposition leaders came up with different claims on the issue.

As the session started with speaker Agha Siraj Durrani in the chair, the opposition benches alleged that police have been busy providing the VVIP protocol to ministers and politicians, which gives bandits free hand. However, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, who also holds the portfolio of home minister, claimed that law and order situation was improving and announced that his government will wipe out the dacoit culture soon.

The debate ensued in the house when Nand Kumar Goklani of Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) moved the call attention notice on the law and order and killing of policemen by dacoits in the Ghotki district.

"In a recent incident, five police officers, including DSP and two SHOs were killed in the Ghotki district. After the incident, the bandits released different videos celebrating it in the Katcha area. I want to know why the police have failed to take action against those dacoits,” Nand Kumar said.

He further said that the criminals kidnap people and challenge the writ of the government by releasing statements on social media.

According to Kumar, the Sindh government spends more than Rs120 billion on the law and order but fails to deal with the dacoit issue in the Ghotki, Shikarpur, and Kashmore districts of Sindh.

He said that 250 families belonging to the Hindu community have migrated from the troubled areas of Sindh given the law and order situation.

Read more: Five cops martyred in operation against dacoits

“I request the government to fix a few days' debates on this sensitive issue so that the assembly can come up with proper planning to cleanse the riverine areas of the crime," Goklani said.

Responding to the call attention, CM accepted that there are some troubled areas where the dacoit had been operating. "The recent ambush on the police in Ghotki district was in response to the killing of notorious dacoit Sulto Shar. The police came under attack when they were busy recovering hostages," he said.

However, he said, “the security is much better than in 2007 when people would not travel without a police convoy in Sindh.”

Quoting a police report, the chief minister claimed that police have killed 29 dacoits and arrested 585 in Shikarpur besides safely recovering 63 hostages in the last 13 months. "In Kashmor, police killed 23 dacoits and busted more than 30 gangs this year," he added.

Music teachers

Tehreek Labaik Pakistan MPA Muhammad Qasim drew the house's attention towards the plan for the appointment of music teachers at Sindh government schools.

Moving the call attention notice, he said that the appointment of music teachers would promote the song and dance culture, which was against the spirit of Islam.

“I request the education minister to stop appointment of music teachers and hire Arabic teachers,” Qasim. He added that a huge number of schools were closed in Sindh with thousands of ghost teachers, but the Sindh education ministry was attaching all the importance to promoting music.

"Out of 150,000 teachers, around 135,000 do not know about mathematics and science while most of the schools in Sindh are deprived of toilet facilities,” he maintained. Qasim further added that the walls and roofs of the government schools have collapsed. The ministry should give attention to these issues rather than creating a fuss over music classes," he said.

While responding to the call, Sindh Education Minister Sardar Ali Shah said that music enhances the cognitive and creative ability of the students and the Sindh government has put it as an optional subject.

"Why is there no objection to the national anthem as it also contains music", he said.

He added that qawwali is also part of the music and there is no harm in it. Many Sufi saints of Pakistan have written and sung poetry to praise the Almighty Allah. The education minister further said that the Sindh government has also given preference to Arabic teaching and Holy Quran in all schools.