SUKKUR: The Second Additional District and Sessions Judge of Kandhkot Mohammad Suleman Buriro on Saturday ordered registration of an FIR against an SHO and his team in a case of alleged fake encounter in which two youths were gunned down in Ghouspur on Feb 1.

The bereaved families had filed separate applications for action against Ghouspur SHO Ahmed Nawaz Jakhrani and his six-member team that included Abdullah Channa and Bakht Ali Soomro.

Producing a copy of the FIR pertaining to the alleged encounter, the police submitted in court that the suspects were criminals and had fired upon the policemen to escape arrest.

In his application, Attaullah Sheikh stated that his brother, Asad Sheikh, was shot dead by the policemen when he refused to offer bribe demanded by them.

The other applicant, Khan Sheikh, also made the same claim stating that the police team had asked his son, Meer Sheikh, for bribe which he could not afford to pay. Therefore, the applicant claimed, the policemen shot him dead.

Another police team booked for allegedly killing a motorcycle rider

After hearing the two sides and examining the evidence produced by the police, the judge ruled that the respondent police officials failed to produce substantial evidence to support their claim.

He ordered registration of a murder FIR against the SHO and his team members.

The applicants told local reporters outside the court that no weapons were seized from the deceased youths. They said the police killed them in cold blood and showed the murders as the outcome of an encounter in the relevant FIR.

Police officer, five subordinates booked

The SHO and five of his subordinates at the Karampur police station in Kandhkot-Kashmore district were booked on Saturday after enraged members of the Jaffery community took to the streets and blocked the nearby section of the Indus Highway over killing of a motorcycle rider allegedly by police.

Carrying the body of Ghulam Hussain Jaffery, several hundred protesters proceeded to the Karampur section of the highway and blocked it with burning tyres and junk.

The protesters kept raising slogans against police and demanding arrest of the killer. Movement of vehicular traffic along both tracks of the highway remained suspended for several hours due to the protest. Hundreds of vehicles remained stuck in the queues.

According to the bereaved family, Ghulam Hussain Jaffery was on his way to his village on a motorcycle and after he passed by the police-post near Karampur, he received a bullet fired from the post. Those manning the police post escaped soon after the incident, the protesters told the media.

Activists of the Jeay Sindh Mahaz (JSM) Ghayal Sindhi, Abbas Bajkani and others, also joined in the protest.

Senior police officials held negotiations with the protesters in their attempt to get the highway cleared for traffic. They allowed the bereaved family to lodge an FIR of the incident at the Karampur police station.

Gul Hasan Jaffery, the victim’s brother, lodged the murder case against SHO Ghulam Shabbir Bhayo, Karim Bakhsh Dahani, Jahangir Chandio and three other policemen.

After the case was registered, the protesters dispersed peacefully.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2023