SANGHAR, Jan 10: The additional and sessions judge of Tando Adam on Saturday released 34 people, including women and children, who accused their landlord of wrongful confinement.

Jhol police acted upon the orders of the district and sessions judge of Sanghar Amjad Ali Bohio who had ordered a week ago to get the labourers and their families released after receiving an application from Gulyo Bheel. The police who took so long in complying with the orders due to Muharram duties took the peasants to Tando Adam court because the district and sessions judge was on leave.

The judge released the peasants including five men, seven women and 21 children on personal sureties and ordered them to be present in the court of district and sessions judge on Monday.

The released labourers told journalists that they had been tilling the lands of Ali Ghulam Mari in 5-Dim village near Jhol since 10 years but he denied them their share in the crops.

They said that they raised voice against the injustice but they were forced to work in the field and not allowed to move freely. Even the sick were made to work, they said.

Ali Ghulam Mari rejected the peasants’ allegations and said that he had always treated them like family and paid them scrupulously according to their share. Everything was on record, he said.

He alleged that the peasants anted to gobble up the loan he had paid them as advance. The peasants had also made a false claim on the cattle heads which belonged to him, he said and vowed to fight the case in court.