SUKKUR: An elderly man who had been held hostage by a gang of dacoits in the riverine area of Kot Shahu in Shikarpur district for about a month was shot dead and his body was dumped at a desolate place along Bachao Bund (dyke).

Some passers-by spotted the body lying on the dyke and reported the matter to the Kot Shahu police, who proceeded to the specified place and brought the body to the police station on Friday.

The victim was later identified as Abdul Ghaffar Hakro, aged about 70.

His family members were contacted and called to the police station, where they recognised him.

Speaking to the local media, the bereaved family said that Ghaffar Hakro was kidnapped about a month ago by a gang which had demanded Rs10m ransom for his release.

They said the kidnappers contacted them several times during the period and kept exerting pressure for ransom. They said they approached police and begged for help in getting Hakro freed but in vain.

At one stage, they said, the gang reduced the ransom amount to Rs5m when they told it that they were unable to arrange such a huge amount of money.

“Since we are poor, we could not arrange even Rs5m, which is indeed a huge amount,” they said.

They said they also approached some influential figures of the area for help but without any response.

On Friday, the family said, they received a call from the Kot Shahu police who said that they had found an elderly man’s body and were in the process of identifying him. “We went to the police station and recognised our beloved,” they said.

The bereaved family said that Ghaffar Hakro was kidnapped in Pahelwan village of Khanpur taluka.

Circumstantial evidence suggested that the man was shot dead somewhere else and his body was brought by a vehicle to the place to dump it.

Two youths seeking to join gangs saved

Two teenage youths were picked up by police while they were trying to enter the gang-infested riverine area of Ghotki district on Friday.

When the youths, Jawad Shaikh and Mukhtiar Ali, were escorted to the A-Section police station of Ghotki, they stated that they intended to join a gang of dacoits.

During an interrogation, they told the police that some ‘regular callers’ introducing themselves as ringleaders of their gangs had invited them to a specific place within the riverine area and offered proper training, according to SHO Gul Mohammad Mahar of the A-Section police.

He said Jawad was a resident of the Malik Wahan area of Ranipur taluka and Mukhtiar a resident of Mir Mohammad Shar village of Kot Diji taluka, both the talukas fall within Khairpur district.

The police said that the youths were actually being lured into the lucrative crime world but were actually saved from being kidnapped for ransom.

SHO Mahar said that the youths’ movement was being monitored by the police units deployed at the entry and exit points of the riverine area. They were stopped and picked up while going towards the dangerous riverine area along the link road leading to Bangal Ghoto village of Qadirpur.

The youths were later handed over to their families, Ghotki SSP Dr Samiullah Soomro said.

Published in Dawn, January 4th, 2025