“If you want to work in Karachi, you must pay extortionists,” is the pragmatic claim of the 29-year-old man who has been involved in demanding extortion money for a political party for the last three years.
“In our profession, we don’t look at whether we’re strong, but if the other party is able to pay up,” says I*, with a 9mm pistol in hand, as he sits outside his apartment in District East. “This is give and take. No one is doing a favour. We ask for money to spare someone’s life and they pay up for the same reason. It’s a simple formula.”
Becoming an extortionist in Karachi is the easy way out to not just bankrolling a political party’s operations but also to rise in the murky hierarchy of criminal operations in Karachi.
Small-time criminals with no affiliation to gangs or political parties can easily call someone up, say that they are from so-and-so party or gang and make an extortion demand. Their entry into the city’s criminal operations has complicated how extortion works in Karachi, since it has become difficult to identify where the demand is actually coming from.
Instead of relying on other sources, every gang and criminal group in town is extorting money to be able to meet its budgetary needs. Almost all political and nationalist parties are involved in extorting money in Karachi, say observers. By one estimate, over Rs50 million is collected from traders, businessmen, shopkeepers, industrialists, factory owners and construction companies in Karachi, relying on a tried-and-tested formula of blackmail or asking for a ‘donation’ or ‘protection money’ on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
They are assisted by a network of employees, relatives, guards and drivers, and use cell phones, verbal demands conveyed by boys on motorcycles and written slips of papers to convey their calls for money. There is also a system of surveillance in place, so traders are told of where their children go to school and what their family members are up to so that they know that the extortionists are keeping an eye on them.
A*, who works at a textile mill in SITE, is one of the many victims of extortionists.
“I had to stop going to the office for a few days. If I didn’t have anyone to support me I would have gone crazy,” he said.
Extortionists are known to call up traders and industrialists with their demands. While A never paid up, he was convinced that someone from his inner circle had provided his details to criminal groups.
Others have paid up or negotiated the amounts asked for them. According to one account, the amount can be discussed and brought down. Others have just shifted their families to other cities or countries.
Those targeted by extortionists play a cloak-and-dagger game, changing vehicles and cell phone numbers to escape their insistent calls.
The police also help traders deal with extortionists and advise them to negotiate. One industrialist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that he shifted his family abroad because he was convinced that they would always use them as a way to get to his cheque book.
Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wassan and police officials have said that extortionist groups are not new to Karachi. But while it was once easy to know who was behind that mysterious phone call asking for hundreds of thousands of rupees, Karachi is far more complicated now with the myriad groups operating throughout the city, and those using their names to inspire fear in their victims.
Resistance isn’t a strategy either. Over half a dozen traders in Karachi, especially in the South district, have been killed for refusing to pay up.
Problems have also emerged with different groups battling out for turfs.
Paying extortion doesn’t mean the other group won’t approach you for money, and this has also seen a decrease in share for groups that were traditionally the sole operator in extortion. In some areas, the turfs are neatly demarcated and work with mutual understanding, given the political deals between the groups’ leaders or parties. But with the involvement of criminal groups with no political affiliation, a turf war has emerged and results in a renewal of target-based killings.
But there is no one to turn to. The police have been deemed as being ineffective in dealing with the situation; since it is highly politicised, few traders actually lodge First Information Reports (FIRs) with the city’s cops.
Even with the initiation of an Anti Extortion Cell, few have stepped up to register complaints and prefer to reply on personal connections to rid themselves of the extortionists. Despite the furore over extortion, Karachi police chief Akhtar Hussain Gorchani has only received 15 complaints in 10 days. “I thought extortion had reached a limit but I am confused at the few numbers of complaints received by the Anti Extortion Cell,” he told The Express Tribune. “Either people can’t develop trust in the police or there’s some other reason.”
Crime Investigation Department SSP Fayyaz Khan said that criminal gangs have complicated the city’s situation, since they use the names of influential political parties to back up their demands. He said there is violent retribution for those who refuse to pay up.
This also makes it difficult to estimate how much money is extorted from Karachi, though a source said that at least Rs10.5 million was demanded from the traders on Tariq Road each month. In his testimony to the Supreme Court of Pakistan last August, the DG Rangers said that extortion is a ‘normal practice’ and at least Rs10 million is collected every day, from shopkeepers to the city’s prominent businessmen. The negotiated amount that is paid is far less than what is being demanded.
For complainants who don’t have someone influential backing them up, they can’t find a way to track who has made the extortion demands over the phone. Often, a caller will use a single phone number to dial 20 traders and make demands, but the process of verification is difficult. The police do not appear to have access to trace calls, and requests end up going through several levels, from the SHO to the SSP to the DIG to the additional IG, who will then forward it to the Intelligence Bureau who will ask the Inter-Services Intelligence to help. It can take up to three months to trace calls through the official route, which makes the notion of listing the cell phone numbers being used in complaints useless.
*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals
SOME BHATTA PRONE AREAS (according to police sources):
Gulshan-e-Maymar, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Sacchal, Gadap, Malir, Gulshan-e-Hadeed, Bin Qasim, Lyari, Old city areas, Garden, Golimar, Pak Colony, Site, Shershah scrap market, Saddar, Napier Road, Kharadar, Mithadar, New Karachi, Surjani, Ranchore Line, Soldier Bazaar, Shah Faisal Colony, Korangi, Landhi, Kharadar, Liaquatabad, Sohrab Goth, Orangi, Qasba, Banaras, Kati Pahari, SITE, Baldia, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Essa Nagri, Old Sabzi Mandi, Abul Hassan Ispahani Road, Hassan Square, Bahadurabad, Quaidabad, Keamari, Tariq Road, Sharafi Goth, Korangi, Lyari, Kharadar, Mithadar, New Karachi and Quaidabad.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 19th, 2012.
COMMENTS (20)
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But '99%' of democracies have problems with organised crime. Extortionist gangs being just one manifestation of these.
Thet also have a serious problem with corruption be it legal or illegal.
An effective deterrence is a big help against such behaviour which '99%' of democracies lack, and the khilafah system has. But eliminating the conditions that create these problems ie lack of self accountability, partisan politics, emphasis on human material fulfilment, is far more effective.
@Revivalist: 99% countries having democratic system do not have problems of extornists. The problem lies with corruption, strong will of the ruling parties to punish them. Police can trace the phone calls within half an hour to know the name of person owning the phone/ SIM . Police is involved and must have share in extortion money. Political parties always fear the mass anger of the people.
This is akin to highway robbery. In Islam, the punishment for highway robbers is death.
If pakistan had the khilafah system in place, these crime will be dealt with severely so as to put the fear in the criminals rather than what we currently see which is fear in the common people.
Mqm..Mqm..Mqm...that is all you guys see. They could also be invloved but there are lot more deadly and worse players than MQM now involved. Go and check with the businessmen, rather than making allegations out of hatred. Isn't it odd that such activities reach to its peak in PPP or other democratic govts.? Why things were not so bad b/w 2000-2008?
liked the post Photo :) ET u guys are very creative and good at photoshop
@XX:
More like 'looting the country' is the best revenge for PPP and their cronies.
Land of thieves.
@Independent from London
Put them in jails who stops them to do..
Why does this always happen when PPP government is in power?They are the ones ruling, they are the ones doing this. This is what happened from 88-90, from 92-95 and now
I heard that there was even some going on in DHA (around badr Commercial).
MQM is the architect of this crime. Not only extortion but blackmailing, target killing is hallmark of MQM. It sounds very hollow and ridiculous when MQM calls for end to extortion perhaps a ploy to blackmail Asif Zardari who is quite ready to accept their demands and it does not bother him a bit.
Who is ruling Karachi from last two decades???? Strange that they are protesting against extortion??? I think people of Karachi are fools.
Everyone knows whoz the biggest extortionist in KHI, but everyone is scared to name it!
The ironic portion is the fact that even to this day we cannot take names and only settle for identifying the problem. The extortionists protests against extortion, how long will we be fooled? I thing all of 180 million have applied for an immigration, that's why no one is bothered.
Yes, it is correct. You have to pay in one way or the other if you are rich or in business no matter small or big. This is not only in Sindh but all over our country. The most ugly and interesting role is mostly played by your near ones and dear ones. Morally speaking, we are under the carpet. Like Polio Vaccine, we need nation wide Moral Vaccine.
Democracy is the best revenge. Jeay Bhutto!
These are not some areas, this is almost all of Karachi.
Police collect extortion too. No mention of them in the articles. Saw it with my won eye they extort 500 each day from petrol pumps only.
And Pakistan is still not a failed state, I wonder when will we realize the gravity of our situation. The political elite is completely aloof (listen to Mr. Zardaris speech) and complacent. Good Luck.
Disgusting.