The Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry adjourned hearing of the suo moto case regarding security situation in Karachi, a private TV channel reported on Monday.
Inspector General of Sindh Police Wajid Durrani submitted the record before the court regarding the violence in Karachi. The bench expressed its dissatisfaction over the report and said that the court could not reach a conclusion in the case with the facts presented in the report.
The court asked the police chief what investigations had been conducted and who were responsible for the violence in Karachi. In his remarks, the chief justice said that protection of life and property lay with institutions. He asked why SHO’s were not aware of crime in their jurisdiction.
To this, Wajid Durrani replied that police and ordinary citizens were not allowed entry in no-go areas of Karachi. He also informed the court that extortion was a problem which was plaguing the city for the last 10-12 years, adding money was received as Zakat and Fitrana.
Durrani informed the court about weapons which were present in the city, such as rocket launchers and anti-aircraft guns to which the chief justice asked where were these weapons coming from? On the presence of torture cells in certain areas of the city, Durrani said the police had not found any, to which the CJ replied that SHO’s would be aware of their presence.
The chief justice formed two benches for hearing cases at the Karachi Registry Branch on August 29 and 30. The first bench is headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar while the second bench will be headed by Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali. The families of the victims of target killings were also asked to volunteer their appearance before the apex court and may also submit any evidence, if available. The court has adjourned the hearing till Tuesday.
