Sindh home minister seeks report on Karachi DHA gunpoint harassment video

KARACHI: Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar has sought a report from the DIG South and ordered an inquiry after a video circulating on social media purportedly showed men in a car harassing and threatening pedestrians at gunpoint at several locations in Karachi's Defence Housing Authority, Geo News reported.

According to the report, the minister directed police to identify the men seen in the footage and said that anyone who uses a weapon to intimidate citizens must be brought to justice. He also ordered an inquiry into whether the video is genuine and into the circumstances in which it was filmed, and asked the DIG South to submit his findings.

The footage, as described in the reports, shows men travelling in a vehicle and threatening passers-by with firearms at different points in the DHA area. They are allegedly seen mocking and intimidating people, with one masked man pointing a weapon at pedestrians.

Lanjar said legal action must follow if the allegations are confirmed. A second outlet, a regional news network, carried the same account of the minister's order and the request for a report from the DIG South.

Police have not publicly confirmed the identities of the men in the video and have not announced any arrests in connection with it. The footage has not been independently verified, and it remains unclear when and where it was filmed.

DHA is a large residential and commercial district in southern Karachi that falls under the DIG South range, the police command whose head the minister has asked to report on the matter. The video drew wide circulation on social media before the minister's intervention, with users reposting clips and demanding action.

It is not yet known whether police have traced the vehicle or the locations shown. The home department has not said when the DIG South's report is due, and no timeline for the inquiry has been made public.

Under Pakistani law, displaying a weapon to intimidate or threaten a person is a criminal offence, and cases are registered under the Pakistan Penal Code provisions covering criminal intimidation and the arms ordinance. Whether any case has been registered in this instance has not been stated.