KARACHI, Oct 5: The police authorities of Sindh and Balochistan have agreed on a joint strategy to curb activities of criminal gangs that operate in Karachi and escape to the neighbouring province, preventing the local law enforcers from taking action against them because of the issue of jurisdiction.

The worsening crime situation has led to an informal interaction between the Balochistan IG and the city police chief, who have decided to hold a joint meeting in Hub later this month to formulate a policy on how to avoid the issue of provincial boundaries while pursuing criminals from one province into the other.

“The development came after months of deliberations and input from officers who came to know, after extensive investigations, that certain areas in Hub, Gwadar and Sakran in Balochistan had become the sanctuaries of criminals operating in the city,” said a senior police officer referring to the recent discussions.

“The trends suggest that they (criminals) kidnap people from the city and keep them in these areas till the deal for ransom is finalized. Similarly, the vehicles snatched or stolen in Karachi are moved to parts of Balochistan bordering Sindh hours after the incidents.”

He said the issue was raised recently at meetings with the provincial high-ups, who were briefed through accounts of kidnap victims, citing the fact that they were held captive mostly in Hub. On the other hand, he said, the city police were in a quandary after it was established that wanted criminals were hiding in Hub, but they could not move against them without coordination with the police authorities concerned. This situation allowed culprits time to move away.

The data compiled by the Sindh police showed that last year, 91 kidnapping cases were registered in the city and by September 2008, some 65 persons were kidnapped in Karachi for ransom. The city police have, however, resolved 28 such cases, in which 59 suspects were caught and three others killed.

The police authorities, however, believe that better coordination between the law enforcers on both sides could fetch better results and help halt the movement of snatched or stolen vehicles across the border.

“We have spotted such places in Balochistan, where the kidnap victims are kept and I have conveyed this concern to the IG of Balochistan and stressed effective measures,” said Capital City Police Officer Wasim Ahmed. “As agreed, the two sides will meet in Hub in the next few weeks to resolve the issues of jurisdiction, and also there would be a defined policy of coordination between officers on both sides.”

He agreed that car snatching and thefts had seen a little rise during the past few weeks, but said the number of these incidents could be curtailed gradually once the supply line of these vehicles was cut off. But, he said, there had been a serious decline in other segments of street crimes in the past few months.

The data compiled by the police suggests that cellphone snatchings decreased to below 100 a day in Sept 2008 for the first time this year, as authorities attributed this positive change to tighter security measures and arrest of several members of different gangs.

Cellphone snatchings declined to 94 a day in September after reaching a high of 173 a day in March 2008.

Though vehicle snatching and thefts remained a source of concern for the police authorities, they believed the recently taken measures — apart from coordination with the Balochistan police — would yield positive results in the days to come.

“We have identified parts of the city under 18 different police stations where a special force has been deployed with the task to curb car snatchings and thefts. One would hope to see a positive change in those areas very soon,” added the CCPO.