KARACHI, Feb 18: For a fourth consecutive time, the Karachi police have approached the provincial government to extend a ban on pillion-riding till March 13. The Sindh government has readily accepted the police’s demand on the grounds that it will help in improving the overall law and order situation in the metropolis.

However, the police and the transporters appear to be the main beneficiaries of the pillion-riding ban as, according to the excise department, over 900,000 motorcycles have so far been registered in Karachi and due to the ban, hundreds of thousands of pillion-riders have to travel in public transport.

“The extension was done on the advice of the police and in the larger interest of the public as there is a considerable decline in the incidents of street crimes due to the ban on pillion-riding,” said Special Home Secretary Kamran Dost.

The ban was initially clamped after riots broke out in the metropolis in November 2008.

Security organisations’ staff, women, senior citizens and journalists are exempt from the ban.

Capital City Police Officer Waseem Ahmed told Dawn that the police were thinking of placing a permanent ban on pillion-riding as according to him it was the root cause of all law and order related problems.

“If there (has been) no terrorist activity during the past three months then it shows the system [pillion-riding ban] works,” he said.

‘Peace or convenience?’

When his attention was drawn towards the plight of people, he said: “They have to choose whether they want peace or their convenience”.

The issue of the ban on pillion-riding also echoed in the recently concluded session of the Sindh Assembly when a legislator belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement drew the attention of the house to it, claiming that between three and four million poor people were facing extreme hardship due to the ban in Karachi. He requested that the ban period should not be extended beyond Feb 20.

However, the special home secretary said that a permanent ban on pillion riding required an amendment to the Motor Vehicles Ordinance and at present the government imposed a temporary ban under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code. He said there were reports that the ‘facility’ was misused by the pillion-riders and, therefore, the government decided to enforce the ban.

“I don’t deny the fact that it [the ban] would cause problems to citizens. We will reconsider the decision once the month of Rabiul Awwal passes,” he added.

Parties differ

While a leader of the Pakistan People’s Party tried to justify the ban and MQM leaders kept mum over the issue, the city chief of the Jamaat-i-Islami strongly condemned the decision and demanded the authorities concerned immediately lift the pillion-riding ban.

PPP leader Waqar Mehdi, who is also a special assistant to the Sindh chief minister, said that even though the citizens of Karachi were facing some problems, there were many advantages of the ban. “The citizens have benefited from the ban because the incidents of targeted killings and street crimes in the city are on the decline,” he claimed.

Provincial minister and MQM leader Shoaib Bukhari refused to comment on the subject saying that the party would discuss the issue in its parliamentary party meeting.

Mohammad Hussain Mehenti, the JI’s city chief, told Dawn that instead of banning pillion-riding, the government should keep an eye on criminals. “Why is the government punishing the common citizens of Karachi for the failure of the police in curbing crimes?” he asked.

He said that the motorcycle is the cheapest mode of transportation for the poor and the ban severely affected lower-income citizens as they had to spend more money on transport to get to their workplaces, educational institutions, etc.

On the other hand, the police straightaway registered cases against the violators of the pilling-riding ban under Section 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code and produced them in the court of deputy district officers (revenue), who also act as special judicial magistrates.

The official in charge of all DDOs (revenue), Additional Executive District Officer Matanat Ali Khan, told Dawn that the DDOs of Karachi’s 18 towns have been instructed to release the violators of the pillion-riding ban on bail on their personal surety.

“In 99 per cent cases, the DDOs release the person on his personal surety. But they have no power to quash the cases against them,” he said. “The police have to submit a charge-sheet against the violator within 14 days, but there are instances when the police fail to submit the charge-sheet despite the passage of two months. After submission of the charge-sheet, the DDO concerned can dispose of the case by imposing a negligible fine on the violator.”