ISLAMABAD, Aug 19: A new strategy is being worked out to control law and order problem in urban Sindh, says Secretary Interior Tasneem Noorani.

“We need to have some better and well thought out strategy to improve law and order situation specially in Karachi by focusing on cleansing sectarian violence”, Tasneem Noorani said on Tuesday while talking to Dawn here.

He said that the Sindh government had been directed by the Centre to coordinate more closely with federal agencies to prevent the outbreak of violence.

The Sindh administration, he said, was being provided necessary support to get hold of criminals and other anti-social elements.

Without ruling out the possibility of a foreign hand in recent incidents of violence and sabotage activities, the interior secretary said: “Our intelligence network does suggest the possibility of a foreign hand in latest incidents.”

Stressing the need for apprehending sectarian terrorists to improve law and order situation in the province, he said that they had been causing problems in this regard.

Referring the bomb blasts that damaged the railway line near Nawabshah and Thatta last week, he said that the incidents were a matter of concern and would be looked into seriously to unearth the hidden hand involved in them.

Mr Noorani said that the government alone could not do every thing and that political and religious leaders would also have to play their due role in restoring peace in Karachi and other urban centres of the province.

Sources in the PML-Q maintained that increasing lawlessness in Sindh highlighted the inefficiency of the Sindh government.

They said that alleged differences between the chief minister and the governor on various issues were resulting in bad law and order situation in the province.

According to a senior leaguer Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali was being taken into confidence to ensure firm leadership in Sindh.

He said the Centre needed the full cooperation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement to restore peace in Karachi and, “if both the factions of the Karachi-based organisation continue to fight and kill each other, law and order problem cannot be resolved”, the PML-Q leader said requesting anonymity.

He said that the next meeting of the PML-Q’s central committee would take into account in detail the law and order situation in Sindh.