The Blatant Lie!

Finally, terming as false, the United States Embassy has refuted the reports of Sindh Rangers. Reacting to media reports based on what the Rangers briefed to the Supreme Court, a spokesperson of the US Embassy, through a statement refuted the claims, saying media suggestions that 19,000 United States/ISAF containers were stolen, including containers that contain weapons and ammunition, "are false". The statement released from the Embassy of United States said that neither the United States nor ISAF has ever shipped weapons or ammunition via Karachi ports. 

Previously, the head of the Sindh Rangers, Major General Rizwan Akhtar had told the Supreme Court last week that about 19,000 containers had gone missing a few years ago and that a shipload of arms and ammunition had been brought to Karachi and their whereabouts was never ascertained. Presenting his report to the Supreme Court headed by the CJP himself, the DG Rangers informed the apex court that around 19,000 shipping containers containing weapons and vehicles had gone missing during the tenure of the former minister for ports and shipping (Babar Khan Ghouri). He also said that the weapons were taken to the tribal areas and then were brought back to the port city.

Very importantly, the third consecutive hearing of the Karachi law& order case, was attended by very top government officials including the Inspector General Sindh, Additional IG, three Zonal IGs, DG Rangers Sindh Rizwan Akhtar and the Chief Secretary, along with other official of the Sindh government. However, none of them showed his disagreement with the DG Rangers. Moreover, not a single objection was raised from the Pakistani agencies including the ISI, IB, MI or FIA to the said report. Practically speaking, it appeared as if the DG Rangers` report on the 19,000 ghost containers was like an unannounced, but on record JIT against MQM and its former Federal Minister Babar Khan Ghouri.

Now, after the US Embassy has declared the report false, what is the credibility of the DG Rangers report? Was that the investigation that brought about such a fake report? More interestingly, the DG Rangers had also claimed that the illegally smuggled weapons previously of the US military troops in Afghanistan were also recovered in Waziristan when he was serving in the restive tribal region.

The question is, when the weapons of the US military troops had not been even stolen from Karachi, then how were they discovered in Waziristan during his tenure there? Does it not prove that to what extent the DG Rangers had gone in order to malign MQM? How easily the Supreme Court was misguided by the DG Rangers fearlessly? Was misguiding the Supreme Court by him not a deliberately committed contempt of court? Will the Supreme Court not take up this matter very seriously? Furthermore, after the US Embassy has declared the report false, what is the credibility of all the “investigative” reports having being prepared and submitted to Supreme Courts by the Law-enforcement agencies on the roots of the violence in Karachi?

The Entire Pakistan knows very well that the DG Rangers, IG/DIG Police and the officials from other agencies are the pilots of the planned operations in Karachi and this was one of the most important reports which had to determine the direction of the imminent targeted operation. Now, in the newly developed scenario, how can the resulting operation be in the right direction? Will such an intentionally diverted operation ever bring peace in Karachi? So, should the Chief Justice Supreme Court of Pakistan not take suo moto notice of the severe crime committed by the DG Rangers and his other contemporaries of not only maliciously targeting a specific party and his people, but also befooling the highest court of Pakistan?

It is on record that during the hearing of the Karachi suo moto case in 2011, the officials from the same law-enforcement agencies gave briefing to the Supreme Court judges including the CJP Mr. Iftekhar Choudhry, in their chamber on the law & order of the city. As a result, when the Supreme Court of Pakistan gave its judgment, it was purely based on the same feeding. That was the reason why the SC judgment said,“ We have been told that MQM, ANP, PPP, Jamat-e-Islami, Sunni Tehreek and other groups are involved in the extortion and have their militant wings.“ Since the judgment was not the result of any judicial proceedings, but was based on what the law-enforcement Agencies had secretly reported to them, consequently, the judges preferred using the phrase “We have been informed..” instead of, “It has been proved..”.

The question is, after having come to know the way reports are prepared and submitted to Supreme Court from the law-enforcement agencies, has the SC judgment of the Karachi suo moto notice case, not become logically, principally and legally questionable now? After the clarification from the US Embassy on the DG Rangers` report, should the Supreme Court not itself review its judgment in which the names of different political parties especially including MQM were associated with the criminal activities?

To tell the truth, these are the types of reports which have caused Karachi to bleed. All the Police, Ranges as well as the military operations were launched on the basis of the similar reports. That is the reason why, instead of any improvement, Karachi has been facing the disaster. Therefore, the Supreme Court needs to take stern action against all the people responsible for deliberately misguiding the planned operations and should ensure that the state machinery cannot be misused against the innocent people, party or community. However, if the culprits are once allowed to target whomever they want in the name of restoring peace, then it would surely be a deliberate attempt to weaken Pakistan that cannot be forgiven at all.