Despite the arrest of target killers by the Sindh Government and the accusation by former Provincial Home Minister Zulfikar Mirza and holding their coalition party largely responsible for the incidents of target killings, the records of the last two years and past three months indicate that it is mostly the workers of the Muttahida Quami Movement who have fallen victim to the incidents of target killings in Karachi. During this period 165 workers and sympathizers of the MQM were made victims of the target killings and after this is the number of Muhajir Qaumi Movement (Haqiqi) whose 96 workers became victim of barbarity. While in the same period 68 PPP workers and 66 workers of ANP fell victim of target killings.
According to the figures separately released by the Citizen Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) and Ministry of Interior 31 workers of Muttahida Quami Movement died in the incidents of target killings whereas 16 workers of PPP, 10 of ANP, 4 of Muhajir Quami Movement (Haqiqi), 4 of Sipah-e-Sahaba, 6 of Sunni Tehreek, one of PML – N, 1 of PPI and 1 Shiite, making a total of 83 people became victim of target killings in the months of January, February and March.
Dr Kaleem Shaikh, who is presently posted as the Senior Medico Legal Officer at the Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre, has confirmed that the target killers become very ruthless while attacking their victims directly hitting in the head and the face due to which sometimes even the identification process becomes very difficult and looking at the victim is a ghastly sight.
According to the CPLC sources 63 workers of the Muttahida Quami Movement were made victims of target killing in 2009 while 52 workers of Muhajir Qaumi Movement were targeted. While in the same whole year 8 ANP workers and 20 PPP workers became victims of the killers. In 2009 nine workers of Sipah-e-Sahaba, 2 of Sunni Tehreek, Muslim League Nawaz 2, Muslim League Functional 1 and 1 worker of Shaheed Bhutto group were murdered. This figure rose to 269 in the year 2010. In this whole year 31 workers and sympathizers of the Muttahida Quami Movement were killed. After the MQM second number is of ANP whose 48 workers were targeted while 40 workers of Muhajir Qaumi Movement and 32 workers of PPP were killed.
After this the second largest bloodshed occurred between Sipaha-e-Sahaba and Shiite organizations in which 33 workers of Sipah-e-Sahaba and 21 Shiite workers were killed. 8 workers of Sunni Tehreek, 4 of PPI, 1 of Muslim League Functional, 1 of Muslim League Nawaz, 1 of Muslim League (Q), 3 of Shaheed Bhutto group and 3 workers of Jamat-e-Islami also fell victims of the killers.
Likewise 83 people were killed in the incidents of target killings in the first three months of 2011 which includes 31 workers from the Muttahida Quami Movement, 16 from PPP, 10 from ANP and four from Muhajir Qaumi Movement. Aside from this 1 worker of Muslim League Nawaz, 1 Shiite, 4 of Sipah-e-Sahaba, 6 of Sunni Tehreek, and 1 worker of PPI were killed in incidents of target killings.
Year 2003 of Pervez Musharraf rule is said to be the ideal year in terms of general incidents of killings in which only 76 people were killed throughout the year. This figure also includes murders due to personal enmity and incidents of karo-kari. While in the year 1999 when Pervez Musharraf assumed power 85 people were killed, 84 people were killed in the year 2000, 107 people were killed in the year 2001 and 87 people were killed in the year 2002. The incidents of killings started increasing in the year 2004 and 163 people were killed in the entire year. This figure reached 130 in the year 2005, 278 in the year 2006 and 334 in the year 2007.
There was an alarming increase in this figure in 2008 after the Peoples Party came into power and the figure spiked to 777. In the year 2009 the figure rose to 801 people and in the year 2010 a total of 1339 people were made victims of target killings.
In the second government of the Peoples Party 813 people were killed in the year 1994 and 1742 people in the year 1995 during the operation that started against the Muttahida Quami Movement in Karachi. This includes the extra-judicial murders as well.
The year 2010 was a very difficult year in terms crimes of kidnappings of ransom besides incidents of target killings, murders and mayhem. During the entire year 112 people were kidnapped out of which the police were successful in recovering only 22 victims. The police could arrest or disband only 19 gangs involved in the crime.
In the first three months of the year 2011 so far 26 people have been kidnapped and the police have been successful in recovering only four people and arresting four gangs involved in the crime of kidnapping for ransom. The years 1992, 1996 and 2000 were the ideal for the people of Karachi in which the crimes of kidnappings for ransom were the lowest. According to the figures of the CPLS only 8, 9 and 5 incidents of kidnappings for ransom occurred in each year respectively.