Over the past two years, the northern districts of Sindh have experienced a troubling rise in criminal activities that significantly test the state writ and warrant urgent action. Strategically located at the intersection of three provinces and home to a thriving Hindu business community, the area had the potential to become a major economic hub.
However, it devolved into a criminal hotbed, primarily shaped and exacerbated by its topography, tribalism, feudalism, marginalisation, a patronised criminal industry, politicised police and an inept judiciary, where the frequency of heinous crimes often diminishes their novelty and newsworthiness.
Around a dozen female teachers narrowly escaped kidnapping but were looted in Jacobabad and recently in Kandhkot. A Hindu doctor from Ghouspur, Kandhkot, received an extortion note wrapped in an RPG shell. A trader was killed and another injured in a robbery attempt in Larkana. Six people were killed by a rival group in Sukkur.
A bus came under attack near Shikarpur, killing one and injuring several. Three hundred Hindus migrated from Kashmore due to rampant crime and lawlessness. A police checkpost in Ghotki came under attack, and three cops were martyred by bandits. A man and a woman were shot dead in Larkana in the name of honour. A teenage Hindu girl was forcibly converted in upper Sindh. And the list goes on.
The area’s secure insecurity tests the state’s writ and puts people’s lives, livelihoods and potential prospects of prosperity at risk. The roots of criminal rot stem from either or both intersecting concepts: action and inaction. The former signifies actors and conditions contributing to crime, while the latter suggests LAEs’ inaction in arresting it.
First, the topography — the riverine area in Kashmore, Ghotki, Shikarpur and Sukkur — allows criminal gangs to hide and launch crimes. With a challenging terrain, the katcha areas have historically hosted absconding criminals or those locked in tribal feuds who, over time, indulged in and organised themselves into criminal cartels for the sake of resources, subsistence, protection, or all.
Second, the area’s rural and underprivileged nature fosters feudal and tribal influences, which seek to dominate the region’s affairs. The local influentials tame and endorse armed outlaws of their tribes in the pursuit of political interests, ‘honour’ and tribal strength; thereby, they subvert law and its writ.
Third, the police’s partiality and politicisation in tribal disputes or acts of injustice push victims to arms for protection and retribution. The selective inaction and actions of police contribute to a cycle of grievances and the ensuing violence. Also, frequent transfers of police officials undermine peace. In Kashmore, for instance, six SSPs have been changed in the last two years, averaging only four months in each position, which is too brief to understand or manage the situation.
Fourth, judicial inefficiency, partiality in prosecution and excessive delays in adjudicating disputes compel the aggrieved to seek tribal retribution and retreat for their safety. Prolonged feuds push rival groups to resort to crime as a survival strategy passed down to their descendants.
Last but not least, the media’s multifaceted nexus with police and influential perpetrators adds to criminality. Most reporters in the area sell their souls; prioritise personal connections with police officials and local influencers over their responsibilities; under or misreport the truth; influence police’s actions; affect local transfers and postings; and even patronise social evils. The same is true for the compromised civil society in the area.
Over the years, many operations in the area have been launched; however, their simplistic and purely kinetic nature has failed to curb criminality. Achieving sustainable peace requires a comprehensive approach. Such an approach must address the marginalisation of people and target the impunity of criminals and their supporters, as well as the inaction and selective actions of LEAs.
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