Karachi Diary -- More

Hand it all over!


Karachi is justifiably notorious for street crimes. My peers and I have had frequent encounters of hold-ups, while every few days someone at the workplace narrates a harrowing-yet-quick ordeal which left them without a cellular phone or without a car for a night or two after which the car would be found minus the speakers and music system, the CNG kit and other removables.

While I have heard the most outlandish of robbery stories, nothing braced me for what was in store. Recently, a friend had told my group of how a couple sat in his car and made him drive around while they had alcohol. They left off my friend after having made him drive around for three hours and hitting him not so hard once with the pistol’s butt. There were other stories, too, in which invariably the cellular phone was taken away.

Having heard the story, I was being overly cautious while driving, especially in comparatively deserted streets. It was a summer evening, and I was in Defence Phase VI, turning on a street off Khayaban-e-Mujahid, when I was hit from behind by a silver Cultus. I cursed myself for ignoring my driving in trying to be vigilant against robbers. Two seemingly apologetic young-men got off from the car and I was about to get off when they suddenly got in my car and showed me the gun.

I acquiesced. They asked me to hand over the wallet and then drive around. They extracted my two debit cards and directed me towards the closest ATM. I did their bidding. Gently, they relieved me of my limit of Rs.10,000 each from both the cards, took my cellular phone and took possession of my removable music system. Out of generosity, they let me have the Rs200 lying in my wallet.

I was asked to drive back towards a commercial area. As soon as we reached the market in Defence Phase VI, they directed me into various lanes. There were a couple of cars waiting at the turn ahead and they coolly ordered me to follow a blue car driven by a single female. Once we reached a comparatively deserted route, they asked me to bump in the car ahead of me in the same manner as they had bumped into my car.

With so much already lost, I was not going to protest for the well-being of my car’s front bumper. I bumped into her car. My two tormentors got off with the same seemingly apologetic smile, as the other driver turned around and I was given an exasperated look.

I noticed her expression change to that of bewilderment first and then horror as she drove off with my two erstwhile passengers. I shrugged and drove off to my initial destination.