The terrorist attack in Karachi on December 28, targeting the Moharram 10 procession of mourners, in which over 40 innocent lives were lost and in excess of 100 peaceful citizens were injured, has horrified the entire country. These mad butchers who maim fellow citizens, including women and children, indiscriminately, whether belonging to the despicable sectarian groups, the murderous Taliban or inhuman Al Qaeda, deserve nothing but total extermination from the face of the earth. Equally despicable are those individuals who, after such terrorist attacks, go on an insane rampage of loot and arson of public and private properties, cause incalculable loss and damage to innocent citizens, the owners of these properties and to the national economy. These looters and arsonists, too, deserve the severest of punishment under the law.

Sadly, after the occurrence of all such incidents, what we witness is a meaningless flurry of condemnation and a barrage of expressions of sympathy, a mere lip-service, with the traumatised and the affected, from the president, the prime minister, governors and chief ministers. The ruling junta, to show its benevolence and generosity, announces cash compensation for the dead and the injured, but never punishes the minister concerned and chiefs of law-enforcement agencies for their criminal negligence and unacceptable laxity in performance of their assigned duties.

It is also true that in a city as large and as thickly populated as Karachi it is extremely difficult to prevent a suicide attack by a lone terrorist. But effective counter- and anti-terror measures, such as planted under-cover moles, espionage and infiltration into terrorist outfits, can reduce occurrences of such incidents to a large extent. This aspect of counter-terrorist measures is nowhere to be seen. Although it is difficult to prevent a determined suicide attacker, what is 100 per cent preventable by the police and other law-enforcement agencies is the spree of loot and arson perpetrated by criminal elements in the ensuing aftermath of such incidents. It is the right of every citizen to protest, agitate and participate, peacefully, in all kinds of congregations, processions and protestations, regardless of an individual’s affiliation with a sect, group or political party. However, acts of vandalism, loot, arson and causing damage to private and public properties is simply unacceptable and the state officials concerned should be terminated immediately. Holders of public offices, such as the chief minister and the home minister, must resign or shown the exit gate either by the governor or the prime minister.

Akhlaq Ahmed (A distressed citizen), Karachi