HYDERABAD: The director general of Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, said on Saturday that the law and order situation could only be improved if the paramilitary force was legally empowered to hold a suspect in its custody for seven to 10 days for interrogation.

Speaking at a programme organised by the Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCI), Maj-Gen Rizwan Akhtar said that the Rangers were aware of the law and order problem in Karachi, which he conceded was adversely affecting national economy.

He said  the Rangers had clear directives from the judiciary that no suspect should be in its custody for more than 24 hours.

He claimed that the court released even those culprits who were red-handed caught by the Rangers for want of evidence.

The Rangers DG wanted the Sindh Assembly to pass a law to empower the Rangers to detain any suspect for seven to 10 days for interrogation. Otherwise the situation would remain unchanged, he warned. “What we are reaping today was sown in the past,” he said.