Karachi, Pakistan’s economic powerhouse, has long grappled with crime and chaos. However, recent revelations have shattered conventional narratives about the true power brokers behind the city’s underworld. It is a dangerous oversimplification to assume that crime is confined to impoverished neighbourhoods like Lyari, Machar Colony, and Sohrab Goth. In reality, the epicentre of Karachi’s criminal enterprise extends far beyond these areas and is deeply rooted in the city’s elite class, where drugs and their abusers fuel an unrelenting wave of lawlessness. Ordinary citizens bear the brunt of the consequences, as the city’s affluent circles cultivate, sustain, and protect a thriving drug trade that serves as the lifeblood of Karachi’s escalating crime wave.
The brutal murder of Mustafa Amir and subsequent investigations have laid bare a deeply unsettling reality: Karachi’s drug trade, violent crimes, and the pervasive culture of impunity are entrenched within its wealthiest circles. Alarmingly, this criminal network operates under the auspices of the very institutions tasked with upholding the law. The true architects of Karachi’s underworld are not lurking in the shadowy alleys of impoverished districts but residing in the opulent apartments and luxury villas of Clifton and Defence. Under the guise of business tycoons, political heirs, and social elites, they continue to fund and facilitate narcotics distribution, emboldened by a system that ensures their immunity. Their indulgence in drugs is not a mere personal vice; it serves as a catalyst for broader criminal enterprises, spreading violence, moral decay, and a systematic erosion of public safety.
What makes this crisis even more alarming is the growing number of young individuals from well-off, educated families falling prey to this grotesque quagmire. The high-end narcotics trade is no longer confined to hardened criminals; it has infiltrated university campuses, elite social circles, and corporate spaces. Recent reports indicate a disturbing rise in narcotics consumption among students from prestigious institutions, turning academic environments into recruitment grounds for the drug trade. The consequences of this unchecked drug culture are visibly playing out on Karachi’s streets in the form of reckless behaviour, deadly confrontations, and an alarming surge in violent crimes. Without decisive intervention, the city will continue spiraling into lawlessness, where the wealthy enjoy impunity while the underprivileged pay the price. This is not merely another crime story— it is the exposure of Karachi’s elite as the principal beneficiaries of an empire built on drugs, power, and privilege.
The murder of Mustafa Amir is merely the tip of the iceberg. A deeper investigation reveals that Karachi’s drug trade is not the handiwork of small-time gangsters but rather a sophisticated operation orchestrated by individuals from affluent families, businessmen, and even showbiz personalities. Reports suggest that high-quality marijuana strains such as “Jungle Boy,” “Gelato,” and “Mamila,” along with potent synthetic narcotics, are not being sold in the backstreets of Lyari but in lavish penthouses, exclusive nightclubs, and extravagant private parties attended by Karachi’s privileged youth. These transactions are facilitated through encrypted messaging apps, high-end courier services, and well-connected international networks, ensuring a steady influx of illegal substances, including expensive alcoholic beverages that enter the country despite stringent prohibition laws.
The recent arrests of prominent individuals linked to Karachi’s elite have once again exposed the deep-rooted criminality and impunity that define the city’s upper echelons. Figures like Armaghan Qureshi and Sahir Hassan have long operated within these circles, engaging in drug trafficking and other illicit activities with little fear of consequence.
Qureshi, a known name in Karachi’s underworld, has repeatedly escaped serious repercussions despite previous arrests. His latest detention, following the murder of Mustafa Amir, has underscored the blatant lawlessness among the city’s wealthy, revealing their continued involvement in the drug trade. The fact that his father, Kamran Asghar Qureshi, was also arrested by the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) for drug trafficking further cements the notion that this is not an isolated case but part of a broader, entrenched network. During the raid at a Defence Phase 5 bungalow, authorities recovered 200 grams of crystal meth, a 9mm pistol, two magazines, and 10 rounds of ammunition, leading to charges under the Control of Narcotics Substances Act and for possession of an unlicensed weapon.
How long can Karachi function as a city where the privileged commit crimes openly, knowing they are untouchable? How long before the social contract collapses entirely, leaving behind a lawless battleground where the powerful feast on the powerless with absolute impunity?
Similarly, the arrest of Sahir Hassan, son of renowned actor Sajid Hassan, has exposed the extent to which Karachi’s elite are not just consumers but active participants in the drug trade. Caught with foreign-brand drugs worth Rs 5 million, Sahir confessed to selling narcotics in upscale areas for two years, sourcing high-quality weed from California through private courier services. His disclosures revealed a sophisticated drug network thriving within Karachi’s most affluent neighborhoods. The arrest of these individuals— alongside revelations of their repeated run-ins with the law yet continued operations— serves as a damning indictment of the city’s law enforcement agencies, whose complicity or ineffectiveness has allowed this unchecked criminality to flourish.
The complicity of those entrusted with upholding the law is no longer a matter of speculation—it is a documented reality. An internal investigation by the Special Branch of Sindh Police has exposed a staggering nexus between law enforcement officials and the drug underworld in Karachi. According to the report, over 100 police personnel, including constables and high-ranking officers, were found to be either protecting or actively managing drug dens across the city. The findings reveal an alarming 363 active drug dens operating under police patronage.
These figures are not just numbers— they represent a deeply entrenched criminal network where those meant to combat narcotics are instead enabling their proliferation. The fact that entire districts have been mapped with dozens of such illegal hubs underscores the scale of institutionalized corruption. A similar 2023 report by the Sindh Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) highlighted how over 60 percent of drug-related arrests in Karachi were low-level peddlers, while key players, often with police backing, remained untouched.
The recent high-profile arrests of Armaghan Qureshi, Sahir Hassan, and Kamran Asghar Qureshi further underscore how the city’s wealthiest circles are not just consumers but key players in sustaining and expanding the drug trade. Yet, despite such glaring evidence, the legal system remains incapable—or unwilling—to deliver meaningful accountability.
This is not mere negligence; it is a deliberate and systematic complicity at the highest levels of power, enabling Karachi’s drug crisis to spiral into an unchecked epidemic. The question now is not just about criminality but about state capture by illicit forces, where those responsible for enforcing the law are, in reality, its biggest violators. Unless urgent action is taken, this unchecked collusion between law enforcement, political elites, and drug traffickers will only deepen, pushing Karachi further into lawlessness.
The recent public and brazen assault at Boat Basin is a glaring example of this unchecked tyranny— a young scion of a powerful feudal dynasty, accompanied by armed guards, was caught viciously thrashing an unarmed citizen in broad daylight, fully aware that he would face no real consequences. While his guards were swiftly arrested as sacrificial pawns, he fled effortlessly, shielded by deep political and tribal connections, reinforcing the two-tier justice system that governs Pakistan.
This unchecked culture of impunity, fueled by wealth and influence, does not stop at public assaults or the drug trade— it extends to blatant disregard for human life itself. The infamous Karsaz tragedy stands as yet another testament to how Karachi’s elite can literally get away with murder in broad daylight. A young woman, belonging to an influential and well-connected family, reportedly intoxicated, recklessly caused a fatal accident that claimed multiple lives. In any just society, such an act would result in swift arrest, prosecution, and accountability— but in Karachi, the wheels of justice grind differently for the privileged. No jail time, no real consequences— just a quiet fading of the case from public discourse.
Out-of-court settlements, a euphemism for coercion, bribery, and intimidation, serve as the preferred escape route for the wealthy, ensuring that even the most egregious crimes vanish without a trace. The victims’ families are either silenced, pressured, or financially leveraged into submission, while the perpetrators walk free, emboldened by their invincibility in a system designed to protect them.
For years, Karachi’s poor and working-class neighbourhoods have been unfairly vilified as crime dens, while the true criminals roam free in luxury, shielded by power and wealth. It is not the impoverished who orchestrate sprawling drug networks, launder money, or manipulate the justice system—it is Karachi’s elite, emboldened by a culture of impunity and the complicity of those meant to uphold the law.
The real underworld of Karachi is not confined to the ghettos— it operates in high-end restaurants, exclusive parties, and elite gatherings, where drugs, alcohol, and unchecked power flow freely without consequence. The poor, if caught, face the full force of the law— even for minor offences— while the privileged are exonerated time and again, regardless of the gravity of their crimes. This two-tier justice system does not just breed resentment— it has fueled a cycle of oppression, hopelessness, and silent suffering.
How long can Karachi function as a city where the privileged commit crimes openly, knowing they are untouchable? How long before the social contract collapses entirely, leaving behind a lawless battleground where the powerful feast on the powerless with absolute impunity?
