KARACHI: Families continued to be devastated in ethnic violence in Karachi on Friday after 18 men were shot dead and 10 others were left nursing their wounds in hospital.
Among those killed were 11 Pakhtuns, four Urdu-speaking people, and one Punjabi, Kutchi and Baloch person each.
However, leaders of both the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and Awami National Party, when approached, denied that the victims were affiliated with their parties. They said that none of their party’s activists were killed or wounded in the ongoing violence that peaked on Thursday night.
Orangi Town seemed to be one of the targets as trigger-happy snipers went on a killing spree, leaving nine people dead in what is being seen as violence among Pakhtuns and Mohajirs. Eight others were gunned down in Ramswamy, Sohrab Goth, Memon Goth, Jamshed Quarters, Shara-e-Noor Jahan, Khokhrapar, Jauharabad, New Karachi and Frere.
SSP Orangi Fareed Jan Sarhandi blamed both the MQM and ANP for the bloodshed and said that the police was doing whatever possible under the circumstances. “But the law and order situation has now spiralled out of control and it is for the bigwigs of these two parties who will do something to ease the situation,” he said. “Innocent people are being killed and only the ANP and MQM can bring an end to this violence.”
The first incident was reported between Thursday and Friday night when a young man identified as Shoaib Sohail was gunned down in Ramswamy. He was associated with MQM’s Unit 27 and was shot by two armed men on a motorcycle near his residence.
Within six hours, the bodies of two young men, who were also said to be MQM sympathisers, identified as Mukhtar Alam and Yaqoob Ata Mohammad, were found from Orangi Town within the limits of Iqbal Market police station. Police said that both of them were kidnapped and killed.
Their deaths triggered violence in the city, especially in Orangi Town and its surrounding areas after Friday prayers when armed men resorted to indiscriminate firing and targeting people belonging to the rival group. As a result, initially, two Pakhtun, Nawab Khan and Kamran, were killed and another identified as Salman was wounded in Qazzafi Chowk of Orangi Town.
Another Pakhtun, Abdul Hamid, was shot in Orangi’s Aligarh Colony. Two more Pakhtuns, Mairaj, 20, and Imtiaz Qadir, 19, were killed and Fayyaz Khan, was injured when men fired at people standing at a bus stop in Haryana Colony of Orangi Town.
Shortly after this incident, a 38-year-old truck driver Wazir Khan was killed and two brothers, Rafiq and Fazlur Rehman, were wounded when armed men sprayed with bullets their truck and loading Suzuki on Shah Waliullah Road in Orangi Town. Wajid Khan met a similar fate in Orangi Town.
Another Pakhtun, identified as 24-year-old Abdul Rehman was found dead within the limits of Memon Goth police station. Three more Pakhtuns, Musarat Ali Khan, Gul Sher Khan and Rafiq Khan, were gunned down in Frere, Jauharabad and Shara-e-Noor Jahan police remits, respectively.
A Baloch-speaking rickshaw driver, Abdul Ghaffar Baloch, a resident of Orangi Town, was killed in Jamshed Quarters and a Punjabi-speaking Babar Buksh was shot dead in Sohrab Goth.
A worker of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz was gunned down D-1 area, said the Khokhrapar police. He was identified as Tariq Kutchi, the son of Yaqoob Kutchi.
Another Urdu-speaking man, identified as Badaruddin, was gunned down in New Karachi.
Tension prevailed in Pakhtun and Mohajir localities, especially in Orangi Town, Shara-e-Noor Jahan, Kati Pahari, Banaras, Metroville, SITE, Baldia Town, Sohrab Goth, Abul Hassan Ispahani road and Quaidabad where a heavy contingent of law enforcers was deputed.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 21st, 2012.
COMMENTS (7)
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@ashok: You should ask this question to the hundreds of thousands of Dalit victims of Hindu atrocities. The number of Dalit women raped by Hindus is astounding. Maybe you can educate yourself on the subject here:
[http://idsn.org/caste-discrimination/key-issues/dalit-women/india/][1]
The president and the prime minister are only worried about Seriakistan!
we as a nation are slowly but surely regressing towards the stone ages, i recall during the musharraf era some other worldly power said that to Pakistan "either join us or we will bomb you back to the stone age" well guess what its happening on its own by our selves... please care for each other care for all races colors and creeds. may peace prevail
This PPP-MQM-ANP coalition is the reason why Karachi has suffered. A turf-war where each of these three of the ruling coalition want to increase their share of the extortion!
Karachi is money machine for the ruling coailtion, hence a fight on the right to money, is inevitable
Those who voted for PPP-MQM-ANP has also a part to play in the killings. I hope and pray that people exercise their right to vote sensibly next time!!
Looks like situation in Karachi since last year when 1715 persons were killed in target killings, is worst than what it was in Gujarat for few days in 2002 when communal riots broke out. Since January more than 400 persons have been reportedly perished in target killing
Communal riots were mob fury as a result of burning of train full of Hindu pilgrims in Gujarat. However in Karachi the dance of death has been going on since last many years. How could one group torture, maim and stuff the bodies of innocents to be thrown in enemy area with videos in circulation?
Where are those peace-loving Karachiites?
Kill, kill, kill, till nobody is left. The land of the pure will be as pure as can be.
Simply Hopeless!I always wondered where would the ground split-open first on the Day of Judgement? Now I am sure it will be in the Land of Seven Rivers right under our feet__ catching it's inhabitants in the middle of bloodbath they were inflicting upon their brothers, fathers, mothers, sisters, wives and children.