KARACHI: Security cameras were not installed: Tribunal told...
By Shujaat Ali Khan
KARACHI, June 6: The provision of closed-circuit television in security plans is not meant to be taken seriously, the Saddar Town police officer told the tribunal investigating the April 11 Nishtar Park blast.
Recording his testimony before Justice Rahmat Hussain Jafferi of the Sindh High Court, who constitutes the tribunal, TPO Sanaullah Abbasi said no funds were available with the police to install CCTV. Television cameras at events like the international cricket matches or the Expo were arranged either by the organizers of the events or the government.
Stipulation for CCTV was made for Muharram processions also but it remained confined to the paper it was written on. Sometimes press photographers and TV channel cameramen were requested to provide pictures, he said.
The TPO, however, produced a cassette of a film shot with a movie camera. The film was made by an assistant sub-inspector of police as the main Eid-i-Milad procession moved from Saddar to Jamshed Town and entered Nishtar Park. It portrays the correct picture of the scene of occurrence before, during and after the incident and “may answer many questions troubling the tribunal’s mind”, the TPO said.
Twenty-eight processions were taken out in the Saddar Town on April 11, 23 of which proceeded to Nishtar Park.
Except for a request from (the late) Haji Hanif Billoo for quick movement of a rally taken out by Maulana Asghar Dars to enable the main procession to come out from the Memon Masjid, there was no complaint against anybody from any quarter.
About the closure of cellphones immediately after the explosion, the TPO denied that there was any deliberate decision taken by the Pakistan Telecommunication Company or mobile phone companies or any authority in this behalf.
The mobile phone used by Jamaat Ahle Sunnat leader Shah Turabul Haq Qadri registered call at 7.06pm, a minute after the blast. According to bills verified by him, phones belonging to Maulana Abdul Wahab and Tariq Mahmood Siddiqui also recorded a number of calls.
The phones were functional but because of the large number of incoming and outgoing calls, the network was jammed by congestion.
He made a number of suggestions to prevent communications breakdown during emergencies.
TPO Faiyaz Qureshi of New Karachi said he officiated as Shah Faisal Town police officer from April 10 to April 17 as the incumbent (Sultan Ali Khwaja) was on leave due to his father’s death.
Twelve rallies were taken out in the town on April 11. He said he attended meetings held in connection with security arrangements at Nishtar Park.
The stage erected at the park by a TV channel (QTV) for a night-long ‘naat’ competition was decided by the organizers to be used for the public meeting.
The organizers, the TPO said in his testimony, were in touch with the home minister and the final decision to use the stage was taken at 3pm on April 11.
There were no separate of special arrangements for Asr and Maghreb prayers in the park or on the stage, he added. He also produced a video cassette of a procession taken out in the Shah Faisal police station area.
Gulberg TPO Abdul Aleem Jaffri submitted two video cassettes pertaining to the processions taken out in the Jauharabad-Azizabad and Gulber police stations.
He said he could not certify the contents of the cassettes when the tribunal told him that he could be cross-examined by the defence at the stage of trial. The tribunal time and again told the police officers to be truthful least they fall in the mischief of the law of evidence. They were on oath, the tribunal told the officers.
TPO Omar Shahid of Lyari was on ex-Pakistan leave from March 25 to April 8 and the contingency security plan was prepared and sent to the DIG (operations) in his absence.
Thirty-two minor rallies were held in Lyari from the first of Rabiul Awwal to April 11, which coincided with the 12th of Rabiul Awwal.
Asked why the processions were not filmed, he said resource constraints prevented installation of CCTV cameras.
He replied in the negative when asked whether he informed the CCPO of his inability to carry out the instruction issued by the provincial police officer. He said there were only minor processions in his area and Lyari was not sensitive from that point of view.
TPO Mohammad Imran of Clifton said he did not take action against the SHOs for not making films because the rallies were peaceful.
The tribunal pointed out that once a direction had been made, it should either be followed or reasons be given for inability to do so. Earlier in the morning, SSP (security) Dr Amin Yusufzai and officiating DIG (Operations) Gulam Nabi Memon made their depositions. In all, seven video cassettes were produced by the police.
All the officers said they had prepared their contingency plans in the last week of March or the first week of April and despatched them to the DIG (Operations).
The instructions issued by the provincial police officer or the IGP were received later and no amendments were made in the plans in the light of instructions, which were verbally conveyed to the field officers.
Replying to the tribunal’s questions, they said all processions were peaceful and not a single untoward incident was reported from anywhere. No processionist carried firearms or raised objectionable slogans. The tribunal pointed out that a criminal’s mind works differently from that of an ordinary person.
The fact that everything went on smoothly till April 11 might have led to complacency, prompting the offender/s to cause the blast.
