Karachiites remain vulnerable to stray bullets

Five-year-old Anzala becomes latest victim of senseless firing

KARACHI:

Stray bullets continue to claim lives in the metropolitan city as police struggle to prevent such avoidable deaths by ensuring compliance with a ban on areal firing.

A five-year-old girl named Anzala Waqas suffered a fatal injury to her head from a stray bullet at her home near Noor Masjid in Baldia Town, Sector 19B, within the remits of Madina Colony police station. Anzala was rushed to the Civil Hospital in a critical condition, but she succumbed to her injuries after a few agonising hours.

Anzala’s tragic fate is not an isolated incident. In different parts of the city, children have fallen victim to stray bullets, and the culprits remain at large.

In recent days, seven people, including a young girl and a woman, have fallen victim to these stray bullets. Among them were Anwar, 50, in SITE A; Majid, 25, in Orangi Town; Mustafa, 37, in Pak Colony;  a 26-year-old man in Shrafi Goth; Nazia Bibi, 30, near Gulberg; and a young man named Abdullah in New Karachi.

Anzala’s father, Muhammad Waqas, narrated how the tragedy happened. “Anzala was my eldest child. She was sleeping with her siblings in the room on the first floor when a stray bullet pierced the tin sheet roof, injuring her,” he recalled.

“Initially, we thought it was a head injury, but upon reaching the hospital, we discovered she had received a gunshot to her head,” he added. “Two police officers from Madina Colony police station arrived at our home, took photographs of the room, and left.”

Waqas called upon senior police officials to take decisive measures to stop indiscriminate areal firing in the city. “I have already lost my daughter. No other child should become the victim of such a senseless bullet,” he said in an impassioned appeal.

A former police chief of Sindh has urged the Counter-Terrorism Department to intensify efforts to recover illegal weapons and bring those involved in their trafficking to justice. However, the CTD’s performance in tackling the issue of illegal arms within the city leaves much to be desired, raising questions about its effectiveness.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 7^th, 2023.