IG tells Site body members: ‘Karachi won’t be allowed to slip into lawlessness of 2013-14’

KARACHI: Inspector General of Sindh Police Javed Alam Odho has vowed that Karachi will never be allowed to slip back into the lawlessness of 2013–14, declaring that anyone found involved in crime will face uncompromising action.

Speaking at Site Association of Industry, Odho said both Sindh and Karachi police had pledged to ensure the city does not return to darkness.

“Whoever stands in the way will be dealt with to the last limit,” he asserted.

The meeting was attended by Site Association Patron-in-Chief Zubair Motiwala, Patron Salim Parekh, former KCCI president Javed Bilwani, Site Association president Abdul Rahman Fudda, SVP Ahmed Zulfiqar Chaudhry, VP Tahir Goreja, Law and Order Committee chairman Abdul Hadi, other industrialists, and senior police officers.

IG Sindh referred to the extortion case of Farzand Ali Khan in North Karachi, noting that while extortion was no longer a widespread menace, pockets of the problem remained. He revealed that the ringleaders had fled abroad, were traced to Iran, and red warrants had already been issued against them. “Their accomplices here will not be spared either. No leniency will be shown,” he warned.

IG Sindh announced that Sindh Police is establishing a specialized drone unit, with allocations in the upcoming budget for drones to be used in traffic management and surveillance.

He added that Karachi’s Safe City project had already installed over 40,000 cameras, raising the detection rate of suspects to nearly 70 percent. Highlighting future plans, Odho said panic buttons would soon be installed at major city points. “Citizens will press the button, record a statement before the camera, and within three to seven minutes police will arrive at the scene,” he explained.

He further disclosed that the force’s constabulary ratio—currently 85 percent—would be reduced to below 50 percent, with savings redirected toward recruiting educated officer-grade personnel.

Javed Alam Odho emphasized that modern policing relies on systems rather than visible force. “In developed countries, you don’t see crowds of police on the streets. Cameras and technology do the work. We are moving in the same direction,” he concluded.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026