KARACHI: Pakistan Rangers Sindh on Friday informed an anti-terrorism court (ATC) about 90-day preventive detention of four workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) arrested earlier this week from Karachi.

Rangers personnel along with their legal team produced before the ATC four MQM workers — Waseem Ahmed alias Shama, Muhammad Ibrahim, Muhammad Waseem and Asghar Yaqoob, said a statement issued by the paramilitary force. The suspects were picked up during raids in the Korangi area, the statement said.

According to the press release, Waseem Ahmed alias Shama is the in-charge of MQM's Korangi sector and has been involved in the target killing of "police personnel and other persons through his target-killing ring."

Suspects Muhammad Ibrahim and Muhammad Waseem have been involved "in various instances of murder, land-grabbing and extortion," said the handout.

Asghar Yaqoob provided weapons to target killers and used to buy "ammunition for the Korangi and Shah Faisal sectors," it said.

The statement added that Yaqoob provided illegal water connections in Landhi, Korangi and Shah Faisal Colony areas in exchange for "hundreds of thousands of rupees."

Also read: MQM irked as Rangers detain suspects of ‘political party’ ahead of LG polls

On Nov 12, the Rangers issued a statement insisting that the paramilitary force-led targeted operation in Karachi had not slowed down after the MQM launched its campaign for the third phase of LG elections scheduled for Dec 5 in Karachi, reopening its party offices, Dawn newspaper reported.

“A debate is going on in the media these days that the Karachi operation has slowed down,” Rangers said in the statement at the time. “It is explained here that the Karachi operation will continue in full swing till the arrest of the last terrorist and targeted killer.”

And the Rangers swung into action just eight days after the Nov 12 statement, dispelling the impression that it turned soft on the MQM. On Wednesday, the MQM said its 22 workers were mostly busy with the election campaign when they were arrested by the law enforcement agencies in what the party saw as an attempt to curtail the activities of the most favourite contender of the local government elections in Karachi days before polling day.

Later on Thursday, in a first display of street power against Rangers since the March 11 raid on its Nine Zero head office, the MQM took out a huge rally and staged a sit-in near the Quaid’s mausoleum when police stopped it from marching further towards Jinnah Courts, the headquarters of the paramilitary force, in protest over frequent raids and arrests of party workers.

Some senior leaders along with around 2,000 MQM workers were on Friday booked for holding a rally near the Quaid’s mausoleum without permission, misuse of loudspeakers and rioting.