RESIDENTS of Gulistan-i-Jauhar protest against the spate of knife attacks targeting women in their locality on Thursday.—Fahim Siddiqi / White Star
KARACHI: As the city police chief on Thursday claimed to have made a key arrest in the mysterious ‘knifeman’ attacks in Gulistan-i-Jauhar and Gulshan-i-Iqbal, another woman was stabbed and injured in Gulistan-i-Jauhar in the evening despite heavy deployment of police at more than two dozen spots.
Gulshan SP Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto told Dawn that the 28-year-old woman, identified as Tahira Bano, was stabbed and wounded by the “lone” attacker riding a motorbike in the busy Rado Bakery area. She was admitted to a private hospital for treatment.
These incidents have sowed fear in women in the localities. Women’s rights activists staged protests and criticised the law enforcement agency and political administration for their failure to arrest the perceived lone attacker.
On Wednesday alone six women, including two teenage girls, were stabbed and injured by the mysterious attacker in Gulistan-i-Jauhar and Gulshan-i-Iqbal, bringing the total number of such reported attacks to 12 in a week or so.
Women defy fear, lambaste police, govt inefficiency
The incidents have not only emerged as a serious challenge for the police but have also prompted political activists to question the effectiveness of the Pakistan Peoples Party government.
The attacks also triggered reaction from PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who said: “PPP will not tolerate [these] attacks on innocent women. These terrorists are challenging our nation by attacking our women.”
He told Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to summon Additional IG of Karachi Mushtaq Ahmed Mahar to seek a report about the investigations into the incidents and prospects of the attacker’s arrest. During their meeting, the city police chief told the CM about the “key arrest”.
‘Important arrest’
The city police chief informed the chief minister that the police had detained 15 suspects for interrogation during raids carried out on Wednesday night. Mr Mahar said that “today [Thursday] morning, an important arrest had been made,” a police spokesperson said. The chief minister announced a Rs500,000 reward for any persons giving information leading to the culprit’s arrest.
Mr Mahar stated that so far 10 cases of attacks on women had been reported to the police, to which Mr Murad said he “wanted results”.
Meanwhile, Gulshan-i-Iqbal SP Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto told Dawn on Thursday that six women, including two teenage girls, were injured when a lone knifeman attacked them in different parts of Gulistan-i-Jauhar and Gulshan-i-Iqbal. The incidents took place within a few hours of each other.
The officer said that the last attack, on a teenage girl, was reported near Hassan Square in the PIB police limits at around 10.45pm on Wednesday.
Five other attacks on women took place in the jurisdictions of Sharea Faisal, Aziz Bhatti and Gulshan-i-Iqbal police stations.