Karachi might be the only city in the world where the municipal department is keeping an eye on movement of citizens and law enforcing agencies. The Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC) has one department known as ‘Cam Wing’ that is watching not only movement of common citizens but also movement of Police and Rangers.
This wing, established in 2006, by then City Nazim Mustafa Kamal of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and was first known as ‘Command and Control Centre’. Described as a monitoring wing, formed to control the city’s growing traffic problems even though traffic control is not in the domain of City Government or KMC. This system consists of 400 cameras to keep a close eye on each and every corner of metropolitan.
From the formation till today, this department is in the control of the city’s powerful party MQM. Party’s diehard workers appointed by Mr Kamal still run and control the system and critics say that these workers look after the interests of their party.
“The ‘Cam Wing’ is the main source to spot movement of political rivals (of MQM),” said a police officer on condition of anonymity.
However, MQM leaders deny that the ‘Cam Wing’ is being used by the party to keep tabs on movements of its rivals. “It is totally wrong and out of context,” Mr Jaleel told PIQUE and claimed that MQM had nothing to do with the wing for the past three years.
On February 28, 2011, Sindh High Court (SHC) had ordered to hand over the ‘Cam Wing’ to the Sindh Home Department but despite the passage of two and half-year, no action has taken place in this regard. A SHC division bench, consisting of Justices Gulzar Ahmed and Imam Bux Baloch, in their order of February 2011, constituted a committee --headed by the Sindh Special Home Secretary and Sindh Additional Inspector General of Police along with a Pakistan Rangers representative and a grade-19 officer of the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) as its members-- to supervise the centre.
The bench had issued these orders on a constitutional petition filed by Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi head Muhammad Hussain Mehanti, who sought handing over the centre to Sindh government. At the time of the SHC decision, then Sindh Additional Advocate General Miran Muhammad Shah, brother of PPP leader Naveed Qamar Zaman Shah, had assured the court, on behalf of the provincial Sindh government, that the centre would be run under the control of the Home Department.
The court then disposed off the petition and ordered handing over the centre to the Home Department but due to the pressure of powerful MQM, the previous PPP government did not dare to control the “Eyes of Karachi”.
Interestingly, Karachi Police has formed its separate ‘Command and Control System’ to look after the city’s law and order problems. The police system comprises of 350 cameras and operates from ‘Central Police Office’.
On the other hand, the system formed by the previous City District Government Karachi, with the government funds, is still serving the interests of MQM.
Critics say that the ‘Cam wing’ is not only the irregularity done by the former City District Government in the time of former City Nazim Mustafa Kamal. They point out that in 2006, Mr Kamal also formed an illegal and unlawful department ‘Community Police’, through resolution of the City Council, without fulfilling the requirements of forming any new department.
In this department some 7, 500 activists of MQM got appointment without conducting any interviews to decide their eligibility. The ‘Community Police’, now working in the name of ‘City Warden’, wears the uniform like any law enforcing agency, carry Walkie-Talkie and uses Toyota vehicles colored like police mobiles as it controls the traffic and patrols the city without any legal and lawful authority.
Along with police, all rival political parties of MQM have reservations on this force. On several occasions, officials of this force got apprehended, allegedly involved in criminal activities.
Social media and You Tube footage broadcast video footage of the officials of this force attacking the ‘Chakra Goth’, a small locality in Korangi, and a police bus on August 18, 2011. In this incident eight police officials and two citizens lost their lives.
The Law Enforcing Agencies (LEAs) and intelligence agencies have also allegedly expressed their reservations on the activities of “Cam Wing” ‘ and ‘City wardens’. They complain in their official correspondence that officials of ‘Cam Wing’ aid target killers and terrorists in their activities. The wing also provides information about movement of the police and staff of other law enforcement agencies, they allege.
According to sources, intelligence agencies have recorded the conversations of ‘Cam Wing’ officials with target killers and terrorists. Officials of ‘Cam Wing’ were discovered directing criminals about targets for killing and causing disruption as well as vandalism, looting and arson, sources added.
Several terror attacks since 2007 have shaken the metropolis but no video evidence is kept or handed over to the law enforcers by ‘Cam Wing’.
However, the video clip of a quarrel between former Home Minister Dr Mirza and a private television channel’s team was handed over to that channel on the will and wishes of MQM, leading Dr Zulfiqar Ali Mirza to publicly complain that the ‘Cam Wing’ was being misused MQM.
The writer is a journalist based in Karachi.
