LAHORE - Lahore police claimed to have smashed 360 criminal gangs and arrested their 1,188 members while looted property worth Rs 412.1 million was also recovered during the first six months of the current year. As many as 7,582 court absconders and proclaimed offenders were also nabbed during this period. According to a police handout, a vigorous campaign has been launched against the criminal gangs, proclaimed offenders and court absconders on the direction of Capital City Police Officer Muhammad Pervez Rathore and during the said campaign, the police arrested 1,188 members of 360 gangs who confessed to 2,972 cases including 11 cases of dacoity-cum-murder, 15 of murder, 20 of dacoity, 785 of robbery and 1484 other cases. Looted and stolen property recovered during this period include Rs 8.3 million in cash, 5 kg gold ornaments, 100 cars, 170 motorcycles, 810 cell phones, 10 pickups, one tractor and other precious items. The police also arrested 4,258 proclaimed offenders out of which 241 were involved in murder cases, 204 in attempted murder, 72 in dacoity, 213 in robbery, 475 in burglary and 3,053 in other miscellaneous cases during this period. During the campaign against illegal weapons, 5,899 cases were registered and 5,906 accused were arrested and police recovered nine Kalashnikovs, 222 rifles, 339 guns, 5,100 pistols and revolvers, 31 carbines, 51 mousers, four bombs, 24 daggers, one hand-grenade and 37,000 bullets from their possession. The police also arrested 4,618 drug pushers and seized 21 kg heroin, 1,897 kg charas, 35 kg opium and 13,413 bottles of liquor. The police have also arrested 2,009 gamblers and seized stake money worth rupees more than 3.9m. Moreover, Capital City Police Officer Muhammad Pervez Rathore has said that lists of proclaimed offenders and court absconders involved in heinous crime besides members of criminal gangs still at large have been refreshed and all the divisional SPs should take effective measures for the arrest of these criminals. He said free registration of crime should be ensured and performance of the officers and officials will not be judged due to number of cases but it will be reviewed in the light of arrest of proclaimed offenders and steps taken for the prevention of crime and maintenance law and order in their respective areas. Rathore said that special attention should be paid to the redressal of the grievances of the people and provision of immediate justice to them and warned that strict action will be taken against the delinquent officials. He directed the officers to submit weekly performance report to him pertaining to the arrest of hardened criminals. Dawah wants Fata op halted Ameer, Jama't-ud-Dawah Pakistan, Prof Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, has said Muslim states and lands cannot survive by adopting slavery of foreign powers. He said India and America would not desist from conspiring against Pakistan. He urged the rulers to decide, once and for all, whether they want to formulate the country's policies in obedience to Allah's commands, or do they want their policies to reflect servility to the enemies of Islam and Muslims. He called for an immediate end to the operation in Khyber Agency against the country's own patriotic Muslim brothers. In his khutbah (sermon) during Juma Prayers at Jamia Masjid al-Qadsia, Hafiz Muhammad Saeed said position and power were Allah's trust and the rulers have no authority to make the country's policy decisions themselves. They are obligated to act, as well as to make others act, in accordance with Allah's commands and decrees, he said, and if they run the country by accepting Allah's servility and endeavor to set its people on the right path, they will not only be successful here, in this world, but in the hereafter too. On the other hand, if they formulate the country's policies in an expression of their servility to the enemies of Islam and Muslims and attempt to run the country accordingly, then it will become very difficult to defend either Islam or the country's independence and integrity.