Thousands of professional beggars flock to Karachi to seek alms in Ramazan

Thousands of professional beggars flock to Karachi to seek alms in Ramazan

As Pakistan celebrates Eid, thousands of professional beggars of all age groups have flocked to busy markets, main roads, traffic signals, shopping malls and mosques in the country's financial capital here, seeking alms, according to media reports.

Pakistan is facing an unprecedented economic crisis with skyrocketing inflation amid price rises on fuel and food fronts. The beggars can be seen roaming on traffic signals and seeking alms outside mosques, shopping malls and markets.

Around 300,000 to 400,000 professional beggars head towards the metropolis during the month of Ramazan to cash in on the Eid season, Additional Inspector General (AIG) Karachi Imran Yaqoob Minhas was quoted as saying by The News International newspaper. Minhas said that beggars and criminals see the port city as a major market and they used to crowd the metropolis, pointing out that street criminals came to Karachi from interior Sindh, Balochistan, and other parts of the country.

"We cannot trace crimes through conventional steps," he said in a statement on Tuesday, urging authorities to install more cameras to trace and track the criminals in the provincial capital.

A few months back, dozens of alleged Pakistani beggars disguised as pilgrims were offloaded from Saudi Arabia-bound flights and arrested for trying to travel to the Gulf Kingdom to indulge in begging.

Pakistani beggars travel to the Middle East under the guise of ziarat (pilgrimage). Most people visit Saudi Arabia on Umrah visas and then indulge in begging-related activities, Secretary Overseas Pakistanis Zeeshan Khanzada said last year.

A majority of the pickpockets arrested from within Mecca's grand mosque are Pakistani nationals.

At least 19 people lost their lives in street crime incidents only during the month of Ramazan in Karachi, whereas, more than 55 were killed over resisting robberies since January 2024.

According to Geo News, as many as 6,780 criminal incidents were carried out in Karachi in the month of Ramazan in which 20 vehicles were snatched and more than 130 others stolen. Authorities in Karachi registered thousands of street crime incidents last year that left more than a hundred people dead, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. The Commission also revealed that the first quarter of the current month also witnessed the same pattern.

Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, while talking to reporters in Karachi, termed the street crimes a hindrance to economic prosperity. ''The SIFC — the county's civil-military body — should take responsibility for restoring peace to Karachi,'' he said Wednesday.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)