
KARACHI: The case of Safari Park bomb blast has hit a roadblock as the aggrieved party has insisted the police book a rather unusual suspect: the US Consul General in Karachi.
This is why the case has not been registered for five days.
Two men were killed and another 13 were wounded when a powerful roadside bomb exploded on University Road in Gulshan-e-Iqbal on August 17. The 2.5-kg bomb targeted a bus carrying the participants of a downtown rally organised by the Imamia Student Organisation (ISO) – a welfare outfit of the Shia community. The Al-Quds rally is held every year on the last Friday of Ramazan to condemn Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands.
According to the police, the request to register the case has been submitted, but it was sent to the “higher authorities” for approval due to its “unusual nature”.
In Pakistan, conspiracy theorists often blame the US and the “Zionist lobby” for a plethora of ills. A nexus of the US, Israel and Indian spy agencies and even the ‘foreign hand’ is said to be secretly funding terrorist activities in Pakistan to destabilise the “strategically important” country.
A man identified as Nawaz, a cousin of victim Imtiaz Ali, has asked the police to nominate the US Consul General in Karachi and seven militant outfits under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 for the attack on the Ahle Tasheeh or Shia men.
“The activists of some banned [militant] organisations, including the Punjabi Taliban, working at the behest of the US Consul General in Karachi, were involved in the attack,” argued ISO’s Qasim Naqvi. “We think the US diplomat was directly involved.”
He drew similarities between the bus attack and the December 2010 bomb blast inside Karachi University, suspecting the involvement of some former university students. The police have so far refused to register the case and the ISO has decided to take the matter directly to court, Naqvi said.
Gulshan SHO Rana Haseeb told The Express Tribune that the police did not refuse to register the case. They are waiting to acquire a legal opinion.
The law enforcers suspect the involvement of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in the blast but so far have no conclusive evidence.
Another victim dies
A man who was injured by the roadside explosion succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.
Fazlur Rahman was the driver of the car owned by Syed Suleman, who died on the spot, SHO Haseeb said.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 23rd, 2012.
COMMENTS (22)
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This is the utter stupidity.
We are obsessed with America, tend to blame them for every thing, instead of questioning weaknesses in law and order, we have failed to protect our citizens, in various districts of Upper sindh people can not travel after the sunset, not even patients are taken to Hospitals if needed. Gunmen are at large in Karachi, 6 to 10 people killed every day, should we just register cases against our percieved enemies. I think it is politics, playing with the constituencies, such moves are aimed not for general public but for political/secterian constituencies.
ISO is simply a students' organisation of Shia community which upholds the ideology of Ruhollah Khomeini - the leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution. It does not proclaim itself as a 'welfare outfit'.
Surprised he didn't add the PM of Israel and India to the list. Coming back to reality - why in the World would the local authorities have to pass such a ridiculous request up to higher authorities rather than putting it directly into the round file where it belongs.
Good. Somebody at some point had to raise this. Its good they have the guts to ask what exactly are the US emabssy employees, which are reportedly more than 5000 in number in Pakistan (the second biggest number after Iraq, and see what is happening in Iraq!). I am sure they are not sitting on their backsides eating billions of Rs of their tax payers. We have had enough of this friendship. Time to ask the ISO men what proof they have and bring them to court. But alas, our CJ is too busy warding off flies from the rotten case of his own ward and family. He would nt take notice.
Catch me if you can!
Perhaps the Americans are also responsible for :
The flies on my food. The flea and lice on my head. The mosquitoes not letting me sleep...... and the list continues.
Oh God, our country is slowly going insane. ET was correct to term such people as conspiracy theorists.
Thats the way to go.
@Roti, kapra aur..:
Completely agree... the mention of conspiracy theories in entirely irrelevant to this article. It was so bizarre to read in the middle of this report. The writer does not have authority to write on these issues... how can you say 'Pakistan' conspiracy theories when there are not that many who believe them anyway? Completely misleading
these are not diplomats, but agents.
If it is that easy to get citizens of Pakistan to betray their motherland by "foreign funding", there is no need to complain. There is no patriotism anyway.
Where delusions rule!
just to divert attention . . . ????
I think the report by the correspondent should not contain his/her views on whether there is a conspiracy theory behind it or not. Even the title of the story is biased, terming the action as strange request.
Chalo Bhai! Why dont we book Barrack Hussain Obama!
arrest them without giving a second thought.