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IGP's directive to SPs Mohalla committees to guard against sabotage, terrorism

RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Aftab Nabi, Inspector General of Sindh Police, on Tuesday directed all superintendents of police in the province to set up vigilance committees at mohalla level to guard against acts of sabotage and terrorism.

Aftab Nabi said that the situation demanded 'red alert' by the police and other organisations responsible for maintaining law and order in the province. But the police could not maintain effective vigilance without involving the community and soliciting its cooperation through various means.

The more likely places, he pointed out, are crowded public places such as busy markets, bus stops, railway stations, educational institutions and offices. Among these, markets are more vulnerable because there is no organised vigilance system, as in offices and other closed places.

The IGP said the police station staff and subordinate offices would have to organise an effective vigilance at public places with the cooperation of associations of trade and industry as well as other social organisations. The first element in police effort should be to create general awareness about the threat, which exists to the life and property of citizens due to the nefarious designs of enemy agents and anti-state elements.

Nabi said that as a first step, the DIGs and SSPs should hold regular meetings and brief the subordinate staff about the level of threat, the urgency of situation and give them detailed guidelines for adopting a foolproof plan to counter the situation. These senior officers at their level should contact the representative bodies of the citizens, trade and industry so that the police and the public face the situation through a joint effort.

He said the strategy will be to form vigilance committees at mohallah level by utilizing the good offices of the commissioners and deputy commissioners. The task should be taken up on priority basis and these committees should be functional at the earliest.

Nabi said apart from organizing joint vigilance committees for cooperation with the public, CIA, Anti Dacoity Squads, Anti Car Lifting Squads etc., should also be marshalled for arrest of enemy agents and anti-state elements. This task force will examine files of old cases pertaining to bomb blasts for arrest of suspects and their interrogation.

He said the special branch should co-ordinate with intelligence agencies to update their information about suspects and will keep the federal minister of interior informed about all such incidents through the provincial control room so that the minister remains abreast of the latest position.

The IGP said the crime branch in this connection would also coordinate with the range DIGs, and with the crime branches of other provinces to obtain information and latest developments in cases of bomb blasts in those provinces which were under investigation with a view to seeing whether there is a link between the blasts in Karachi and in other provinces.

The crime branch would also find out from the jail about the accused and suspects of old cases of bomb blasts of Sindh pertaining to 1997, 1998, and 1999 to see whether those accused were in jail or had been released on bail, he added.