Although mafias had their origins in Italy, the mindset shaping mafias permeated in different parts of the world. According to Collins dictionary, mafia means, “criminal organization that makes money illegally, especially by threatening people and dealing in drugs.” Mafia also refer to an “organized group of people who you disapprove of because they use unfair or illegal means in order to get what they want.” According to Cambridge dictionary mafia means, “a close group of people who are involved in similar activities and who help and protect each other, sometimes to the disadvantage of others.” 

Moving from specific to a general definition of mafia it refers to a group of people who use illegal methods and fraud to accomplish their objectives. From a selective definition of mafias, one can understand that the erosion of ethics and values in the past several decades tend to generate the role of mafias everywhere. At the international level, one can figure out mafias in illegal occupation of land as is found in Palestine; energy mafia, food mafia, drug mafia and weapon mafia. 

Karachi is world’s mega city with a population of 30 million and contributes 60% revenue of Pakistan but is notorious because according to The Economist Intelligence Unit it is termed as world’s 4th unlivable city. Karachi is also known as a city where mafias rule the metropolis in the form of water mafia, land mafia, drug mafia, illegal construction mafia and criminal mafia. Coming to Pakistan which has a population of 250 million and is the world’s 5th largest city in terms of demography  and the only nuclear state in the Muslim world, mafias are known for committing election fraud, sugar mafia, wheat mafia, drug mafia, oil mafia and mafias in political parties. State institutions are also not saved from mafias in bureaucracy, judiciary and security agencies. As a result of permeation of mafias in state and societal institutions, Pakistan is........

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