Kidnapping for ransom a ‘profitable business’

ISLAMABAD – Kidnapping for ransom is emerging as a lucrative crime in Pakistan, as 2368 such cases were registered across the country during the last four years with 604 in the year 2010 alone. According to the data compiled by the Ministry of Interior, a total of 449 cases of kidnapping for ransom were reported in 2007, 670 in 2008 and 645 in 2009.
As the country registered a mild drop in the crime in 2010, a sharp surge was witnessed in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) and Balochistan. The number of cases registered in the ICT in 2010 was recorded at 23 as compared to 16 in 2009 while Balochistan experienced 50 cases in 2010 as compared to 37 in 2009, showing a surge in what looks as a ‘rewarding’ business among the criminals.
In Punjab, 190 cases were registered in 2007, 248 in 2008, 224 in 2009 and 192 in 2010. In Sindh, 134 such cases were reported in 2007, 217 in 2008, 188 in 2009 and 177 in 2010. In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 87 cases were registered in 2007, 150 in 2008, 180 in 2009 and 162 in 2010. In ICT, 12 such cases were registered in 2007, 20 in 2008 and 16 in 2009. In Balochistan, 26 cases were registered in 2007, 35 in 2008 and 37 in 2009. Out of the total 606 cases challaned in four years in Punjab, 427 cases are still pending with the courts while seven cases out of the 474 in Sindh, 234 out of the 479 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 30 out of the 78 in Balochistan and 22 out of 42 challaned in ICT are pending with the courts, the data further reveals.
The number of kidnapping for ransom cases in Karachi is also a growing concern for the business community. According to the police record, 103 cases of kidnapping for ransom were reported in the Sindh metropolis in the first ten months of the last year. Increasing incidents of kidnapping of minorities’ members, particularly in Sindh, is a alarm for the minorities with no plan of action to root out the menace is seemingly on the card.