Karachi law and order

ISLAMABAD: Parliamentarians on Monday expressed concern over the law and order situation in Karachi, and demanded the government come out of political expediency and pin point those responsible for the crisis in the provincial capital.

Speaking in the National Assembly about the February 5 terrorist attack in Karachi, Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) SA Iqbal Qadri expressed concern over the law and order situation in Karachi, saying that the situation was worsening every day.

The House admitted four identical adjournment motions – moved by Awami National Party’s Bushra Gohar, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Chaudhry Barjees Tahir, PML-Quaid’s Marvi Memon and MQM’s Abdul Qadir Khanzada – for discussions on target killings and the law and order situation in Karachi.

Hesitation: Referring to speeches made by legislators in the Sindh Assembly, Qadir questioned why the government was hesitating in exposing the elements behind the unrest and target killings in Karachi.

He said the government must act before more incidents of the same nature take place, adding that the Sindh government had failed in maintaining peace in Karachi. He said that despite the deteriorating situation in the provincial capital, no minister had accepted responsibility or resigned.

Marvi said the House was not informed of any conclusive evidence on the terrorist incidents. “Sessions come and go, as do these incidents,” she said, adding that despite the House debating on the terrorist attacks in the country, the government had not once replied to any queries raised by legislators or “given a clear line of action to tackle the menace”.

MQM MNA Syed Asif Hasnain termed the terrorist incidents in Karachi “a conspiracy to divide the nation on lingual and sectarian basis”. He said MNAs should give suggestions on how to counter terrorist activities instead of playing the blame game. MQM’s Haider Abbas Rizvi said the population influx into Karachi from other parts of the country was the main reason behind the unrest in the city.

Talking about the issue, MNAs Amir Muqam and Shakeela Khanam Rashid expressed concern over the security crisis in Karachi and asked the government to take practical steps to tackle the issue.

PML-N leader Tehmina Daultana alleged that Blackwater was managing the security of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, adding that the nation had become America’s slave. Responding to a calling attention notice, Health Minister Makhdoom Shahabuddin said the government was aware of the problem of efficient and safe disposal of hospital waste and was taking steps to address the issue.