Opposition voices concern over unchecked sale of narcotics in Karachi

Lawmakers of the opposition voiced concerns over the issue of unchecked trade and consumption of narcotics in Karachi during the session of the Sindh Assembly on Wednesday.

Speaking on his calling-attention notice, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) legislator Shahnawaz Jadoon said that unchecked trade of drugs and Gutka is under way in the Keamari area of the city.

Jadoon said drug dens have been openly doing business in the locality without any check by the police. He said children of the area have become drug addicts due to a lack of action by the police and other authorities.

The MPA said that unchecked business of narcotics has given rise to other anti-social activities in the area, including frequent incidents of house robbery and theft. He said he contacted the area SSP several times about these issues but to no avail.

Speaking on his calling-attention notice, PTI lawmaker Saeed Afridi said that the sale of narcotics has been under way on every other street of the city without any check. He said the House should be informed about the steps being taken by the police to curb this menace.

Afridi claimed that 363 drug dens have been operating across the city under the patronage of the police. He said the provincial police force needs to play its due role in this regard. Responding to the calling-attention notice, Information Minister Sharjeel Memon said the provincial government has been doing its best to prevent drug sale in the city.

Memon said narcotics reach Karachi from outside the province, adding that the Sindh government’s authority is limited in this regard because the Pakistan Peoples Party does not run Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

When the opposition MPA referred to drug peddling in Karachi’s District West, the minister said the police have a zero-tolerance policy against drugs in the district. He said that 83kg charas has been seized in the district and the police have lodged 83 criminal cases.

Excise & Taxation Minister Mukesh Kumar Chawla said the police have sealed three Gutka factories in Karachi and also arrested 245 people for their involvement in the sale of narcotics.

Ghazi Goth mayhem

PTI legislator Adeeba Hassan voiced concerns over the recent brutal police action against the residents of Ghazi Goth in Karachi. Speaking on her calling-attention notice, she said the police resorted to tear gas shelling against women and children in the area.

Memon responded that the chief minister took notice of the incident soon after the police action. He said the CM ordered an inquiry into the incident, while a DSP was suspended for his involvement.

The information minister assured the House that the government will take action against whichever officer is found involved in the incident, irrespective of his seniority or high rank.

Poor state of roads

Through her calling-attention notice, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan lawmaker Rabia Khatoon voiced concerns over the issue of the poor state of road infrastructure in Karachi following the recent monsoon rains.

She said that all the roads in the city are in a shambles, as they have developed craters after the showers. She added that the newly launched bus service in the city has to face difficulties in its operation due to the dilapidated roads.

Responding to the calling-attention notice, Memon said the provincial government is fully aware of this issue, and it has already released Rs1.5 billion to the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation for repairing the city’s major thoroughfares.

He said that the restoration of the road network and the lifting of the municipal waste from the city are among the top priorities of the provincial government.

He also said that the garbage disposal work has been continuing across the city without any weekly day off. He added that the provincial government will take stern action against the officials who show any slackness in this regard.