Robbers continue to kill people with impunity

Govt has done little except transfers and postings in police and issuing orders to control street crime

KARACHI:

Armed robbers have killed more than 100 people so far this year. Criminals shoot victims on slightest resistance or even showing reluctance in handing over cell phones and wallets.

As the city descends to new depths of lawlessness, police have little strategy at hand except replacing the officers.

As per police statistics, armed suspects killed 13 citizens in January, 12 in February, 10 in March, and 12 in April.

Similarly, alleged robbers shot dead 15 people in May, in June, July and August 30 citizens fell victim to the bullets of the marauding robbers. Sadly, nine citizens have been killed in the 20 days of September for putting up resistance during robberies.

According to the Citizen Police Liaison Committee data, more than 60,000 incidents of street crimes have been registered in the city this year.

The new IG Sindh Rifat Mukhtar Raja and Additional IG Karachi Khadim Hussain Rind, Zonal DIGs, and District SSPs apparently failed to adopt a better strategy to control or prevent the incidents of street crimes in the metropolis.

Police sources claim that the higher officers give orders to the subordinate officers to control the street crimes, but they cannot strategise how to mobilise the force. In the most recent move, IG Rifat reshuffled 186 senior police officers across the province.

Launching of Shaheen Force, installation of CCTV cameras with the help of the community and proactive policing were stated to be some of the initiatives taken by the police aimed at preventing the crimes.

However, much-talked Safe City Project was yet to materialise, which the authorities believed would help them in controlling the crimes.

Robbers are unfazed of being caught on the security cameras. Footages of the robberies at shops, showrooms, and teashops keep doing rounds on the social media, but police are unable to catch the culprits.

In a recent incident, the faces of culprits robbing citizens at a tea hangout in North Nazimabad were clearly visible in the CCTV footage, but police could not trace them.

Numerous city residents were robbed of cash, mobile phones, and other valuables as they were seated at hotels by a bunch of armed motorcycle-riding robbers while the police remained silent. These armed groups frequently target Central district in particular, and there have already been multiple incidents of people getting robbed at eateries and tea shops.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2023.