KHAIRPUR, July 16: A large number of the employees of Scarp boycotted office work on Monday and activists of Muttahida Mazdoor Federation staged a procession, which culminated in a sit-in on the National Highway in protest against the kidnapping of Scarp officials and police failure to find them.

The SDO of drainage sub-division Khairpur, Manzoor Hussain Shah, SDO of drainage sub-division Priyaloi, Ghulam Mujtaba Dhamra and a driver were kidnapped in Johi taluka while on official duty during floods.

The protesters raised slogans against Dadu and Khairpur district administrations and the federal minister, Liaquat Jatoi, for doing nothing to help find the kidnapped officials.

The activists of Muttahida Mazdoor Federation (MMF) staged a procession, which marched around Wapda-Scarp Colony before staging a sit-in on the National Highway for about an hour.

MMF leaders Nazar Mohammad, Feroze Phulpoto, Hassan Bux and Ahmed Ali Shah, son of kidnapped SDO Manzoor Hussain, said that the administration was not taking the kidnapping seriously and criticised Liaquat Jatoi, who according to them, was blaming the kidnappees for being absent from duties not to mention of helping recover them.

Ahmed Ali Shah told journalists that he had received phone calls threatening him that if he did not pay ransom they would kill the officials.

ARRESTED: Babarloi police claimed to have arrested an absconding under-trial prisoner on Monday.