The murderous attack in the Sher Shah scrap markets on Oct 19 was blood curdling. Elsewhere in Karachi the terrorists played havoc. The tally of those who fell to terrorist’s bullets rose to 32 in a single day.
The heart-rending pictures of grieving relatives of victims is a grim reminder that the country has plunged into an abyss. It is enough to unnerve the stoutest of souls.
Had it been a civilised country, those responsible for maintaining law and order would have resigned as an expression of their inability to come up to the expectations of people. The government would have then deputed someone more capable to carry out the assigned tasks.
This reminds me of a PIA captain who belly-landed a Jumbo 747, as he forgot to lower the undercarriage at Islamabad airport in 1977, accepted his blunder and resigned.
But while Karachi bathes in blood, it is strange nobody accepts the responsibility or resigns.
A strong force of around 30,000-35,000 Police and Rangers in Karachi has miserably failed to crush terrorism from the city.
When terrorists struck at Abdullah Shah Ghazi’s Shrine, a senior minister announced at the site that “it is not the responsibility of police to stem terrorism”. Would the minister mind telling then whose responsibility it is to maintain law and order?
There is total inertia on the part of the government. It is not interested in improving law and order in the country.
SAFIR A. SIDDIQUI
Karachi
Other possibilities
WITH the recent cold-blooded massacre at Shershah, another chapter in inhuman gory incidents is added to Karachi’s sad history. We are all aware that this misfortune of bloodshed is a recent phenomenon, which emerged after the so-called war on terror. The worst part is that some of our leadership welcomed it.
Soon after the incident, the talk shows on TV were all riddled with typical blame game and mudslinging tirades.
The ordinary citizen is baffled by the mayhem in the city. Why would a Muslim want to kill his poor and innocent Muslim brethren at Data’s Shrine in Lahore and Abdullah Shah’s Shrine in Karachi?
Many TV debates point fingers at some external forces that pursue a global agenda and also have a stake in our affairs. This conspiracy theory does not hold water anymore.
There are numerous proofs that lead to the fact that the world map is being redrawn. There are many who are interested in the destabilisation of Pakistan. Such internal strife only serves the purpose.
It’s time for us to introspect. We need to join hands against the common enemy. We should not be punching holes in the ship that we all are sailing in, it’s the only one we have.
DANISH AZAR ZUBY
Karachi
Turf wars
THE renewed killing spree in Karachi (from Oct 14 to Oct 19) has claimed 77 lives. Many more have been injured. As usual, the government is clueless, either by design or default, about the perpetrators.
The involved political parties’ leaders (almost all belonging to the ruling coalition) are blaming each other’s parties for the senseless killings!
The provincial government’s ministers have already acknowledged not only their failure to control the situation but also their complete inability to do so.
Under these circumstances, deweaponisation of the city under the army’s supervision and bringing the culprits to book, irrespective of which party they belong to, has become necessary. How this would be done in practice is a matter for the government to work out.
However, what seems to be strange is that the provincial government still does not feel the need to call in the army, impose curfew in the more sensitive areas and carry out massive search operations to apprehend the perpetrators and their patrons.
How long can the federal government afford to permit vested interests to kill and plunder indiscriminately? So far, its performance has gone to prove not only their incompetence but also their insensitivity to the plight of ordinary citizens of Karachi.
S.H. ZAIDI
Karachi
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