BIEK held hostage by 'mafia'

Operatives allegedly extort money from students, get work done out of the way

KARACHI:

An alleged strong mafia belonging to the surrounding areas of the Board of Intermediate Education Karachi (BIEK) has reportedly taken the board as hostage posing a serious threat to the board's security.

The mafia, on the pretext of providing services for various tasks (legal or illegal), reportedly collects money from the students coming to the board office for various reasons like submitting forms, getting documents and such.

The mafia operatives intimidate the board's employees and also use force and threaten to get the work done. If the employees obstruct or delay their work, the mafia operatives do not hesitate even to physically assault them. The board administration has remained a silent spectator on this whole situation.

Two incidents of the mafia threatening and harassing the employees were reported on Monday.

The first incident took place at the verification counter in the accounts section of the board. A junior clerk named Sharjeel asked for time to verify the documents. However, the mafia operatives threw tea on the clerk and overturned the desk and threw the documents on the desk.

Assistant Secretary Farhan Iftikhar reported the incident to BIEK acting secretary, Amir Hussain Qadri.

Another incident occurred at the facilitation centre for women. Scrutiny forms were being collected at the centre. Meanwhile, a person broke the queue and tried to forcefully submit the form. A junior clerk named Ahsan Alam, refused to take his form, on which the mafia operative hit the junior clerk with a stapler kept on the table. The examination controller also reported the incident to the secretary board.

Both the incidents have spread fear and panic among the employees who feel unsafe with the board premises and outside the building.

A board employee said that the mafia operatives charge an additional amount of Rs2,000 to Rs5,000 in addition to the original fee for getting legitimate work done quickly. Sometimes they demand a huge amount for informal work.

Meanwhile, Secretary Board Amir Hussain Qadri confirmed the two incidents that occurred on Monday and said, an FIR is being lodged in this incident while the SHO of the concerned police station has also been informed about the matter.

Police took action to arrest the operatives, but the accused fled the scene. The Secretary Board said that steps will be taken to ensure the security of students and employees.

It may be recalled that in the past, a proposal was made to establish a sub-office of the board and shift the office to other areas of the city to deal with matters related to public dealings, but this could not be implemented.