These are the trying times was fully evident when Prime Minister, COAS and DG ISI met in Karachi on Monday and highlighted the importance of peaceful Karachi to combat terrorism.
Prime Minister Nawaz Shareef met the COAS, Director General Inter-Services Intelligence Lieutenant General Rizwan Akhtar, and Corps Commander Lieutenant General Navid Mukthar, to deliberate upon the security issues in the city. Matters pertaining to National Action Plan and 2012′s Baldia Town factory fire case that took over 260 lives were discussed. Army Chief Gen Raheel Sharif has praised Sindh Rangers for their operation against terrorists in Karachi and said the army will take whatever action is needed to achieve a sustainable peace in the city. The army chief said the Karachi operation would continue, without any discrimination, against all criminals irrespective of their ethnic, political, religious and sectarian affiliation.
Nawaz Sharif’s presence in Karachi was significant because the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in recent years has made inroads in the city and law enforcement agencies have done little to disrupt the militant group. Political parties have the significant part in this failure; parties refuse to give up violence as a political tool in their quest for power. This is why Nawaz had to devote as much time to problems like the Baldia Town industrial fire controversy as on militancy. Indecent interests of Karachi’s political parties are leaving little room to deal with the TTP threat. The presence of the army chief at the meeting and his resolve that the Karachi police be allowed to operate without political interference could mean a lot of things for a lot of concerned people. The PM, who was also given a detailed report on measures being taken to control crime and militancy, urged a full inquiry into the Baldia factory fire. We hope that the problem is being treated with the sincerity that it deserves, and the proof of that can come only through action as actions speak lauder than words.
