Darakhshan policemen struggle to fight crime as they babysit VVIPs

Officers say they have to perform duties outside weddings and dance parties.

KARACHI:

The irony is that people think Defence Housing Authority (DHA) is safe. A look at the numbers proves this – the neighbourhood is the safest for parliamentarians.

In total, the Darakhshan police station has police strength of around 90 officers for DHA Phases V, VI, and VIII and a large belt of Sea View in their jurisdiction. But out of these police officers, hardly a handful of them are out to serve the masses, as majority of them have been assigned to protect dignitaries, officials told The Express Tribune.

“When it comes to providing security to the VVIPs, the Darakhshan police station has been abused the most,” says a former SHO who was transferred recently. “Instead of curbing crime, we are ordered to serve parliamentarians.”

Darakhshan DSP Shiraz Sheikh painted a bleak picture. According to him, 50 per cent of their police strength is not effective as they are either catering to the VVIPs or have been transferred to other stations. Owing to the deteriorating law and order situation, the police have sent a proposal to the higher authorities for the formation of another police station in the area.

Policemen breakdown

The policemen work in two shifts — in the daytime, the station has 60 officers while the number drops down to 30 officers in the night.

According to the police’s dayshift deployment list, 30 Darakhshan policemen are stationed at the residence of the Pakistan Peoples Party leader and former home minister, Zulfiqar Mirza, on Khayaban-e-Shaheen. Out of these, 15 personnel are on duty during the day and 15 during nightshift, which includes two sub-inspectors, six assistant sub-inspectors, four head constables, 18 constables and a police mobile unit.

Another 12 officers, six during the day and six during night, are posted in pairs outside the Jillani House, a judge’s house, and outside residences of two dignitaries at Khayaban-e-Bukhari and Khayaban-e-Qasim.

“Their duty is restricted to the houses and they are not posted anywhere else,” says ASI Aijaz. During a 12-hour dayshift, this roughly leaves 18 officers to protect the heavily populated area. Around five of them are deployed at the police station, leaving 13 officers to patrol the area in singles or doubles outside banks, departmental stores and other such locations.

But reportedly, even the remaining officers are at disposal for VVIP personalities and events whenever the need arises.

“On some days, we have to perform ridiculous duties, such as standing guard outside weddings or dance parties of these parliamentarians and their relatives,” says an irritated officer. “When will they understand that we are supposed to maintain law and order instead of looking at tarted-up people entering wedding halls?”

The police station has six police vehicles but one is deployed at the residence of Mirza and another is out of order. The former SHO said that a plan was proposed several months ago to establish a separate cell to provide security to government officials and parliamentarians but nothing happened.

Shuffling men

Meanwhile, the police station is also witnessing rapid transfers and suspensions of SHOs. In just two and a half months, the police station has seen four SHO arriving and then departing.

DSP Darakhshan Shiraz Sheikh cited the transfers to be an internal matter and said that the police officers could not control crime.

The last one to go was Shafiq Tanoli, who was in-charge for only two weeks as the SHO.

“I was transferred because of an MNA, as I uncovered crimes of his relatives,” an angry Tanoli told The Express Tribune. “Only those who wag their tails behind the parliamentarians survive in this police station.”

Before Tanoli, SHO Pir Mohammad Nasir was removed after 28 days of performing duties due to allegations of taking Rs 30,000 for registering FIRs which he has denied. Sources claim that the SHO was also involved in a few kidnapping cases.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2012.