DADU: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MPA Nawab Sardar Ahmed Chandio, his younger brother, Nawab Burhan Chandio, and five other suspects were booked for their alleged involvement in the killing of Baladai union council chairman and his son during an armed clash between two groups of Chandio tribesmen that had also left a councillor and a man belonging to the victims’ rivals dead on Wednesday.

The clash had taken place at the victim’s house in Ahmed Colony, located close to the DSP office and A-Section and B-Section police stations, in Mehar town. It had left UC chairman Raees Karamullah Chandio and his son Mukhtiar Ahmed Chandio dead on the spot.

A member of the rival group, Ghulam Qadir alias Qadu Chandio, was also died instantly while a district councillor, Qabil Chandio, belonging to the Raees group, succumbed to his wounds a day later.

Area people and some Chandio tribesmen had attributed the clash to an old land dispute between the two sides.

Raees Karamullah’s other son, Baban, and a nephew, Khadim, were among several other people seriously wounded in the clash.

All victims belonged to the PPP.

Nawab Sardar Ahmed Chandio is the chieftain of his tribe in Mehar taluka. His younger brother, Nawab Burhan Chandio is a former adviser to the chief minister.

The FIR (20/2018) was registered on the complaint of Pervaiz Ahmed Chandio, also a son of Raees Karam­ullah Chandio. The other five suspects nominated in the case are Murtza, Ali Gohar, Sikandar, Zulifi­qar and (deceased) Qadu Chandio.

The complainant alleged that a group of armed men led by Qadu Chandio attacked his family members at their house in Ahmed Colony of Mehar town on Wednesday at the behest of Nawab Sardar Chandio, who had long been threatening his father, Karamullah Chandio, and other family members with dire consequences for routinely defying his [MPA Nawab’s] orders. He claimed that one of the attackers was killed when the fire was returned.

The complainant stated that MPA Nawab was angry at his father [Raees Karamullah] and other Chandio elders of his group for having formed a league against his rule over the area.

He said the entity led by his father had undertaken to look into the issues of common men in Mehar taluka.

He alleged that his father had received the fresh death threat from MPA Nawab a couple of hours before the attack was carried out.

Meanwhile, Bibi Chandio, the wife of deceased Ghulam Qadir alias Qadu Chandio, also lodged an FIR (21/2018) at the A-Section police against deceased Karamullah Chandio and his six family members, Pervaiz, Sadam Hussain, Aijaz, Manzoor, Yousuf, Akbar and Sikandar.

No arrests were made till late Friday evening. Dadu DSP Qamar Raza Jiskani told local reporters that an investigation was under way and whoever was found involved in the armed clash would be arrested.

The soyem of the slain Chandios was held at their house in Ahmed Colony on Friday.

Local PPP leaders and activists including former MNA Dr Talat Mahisar, MPA Abdul Aziz Junejo and former MPA Ihsan Ali Jatoi as well as Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader and former Sindh chief minister Liaquat Ali Jatoi, Awami Tehreek leader Sartaj Chandio, Badaruddin Tunio, Imtiaz Pasha Butt, Syed Altaf Shah, Pir of Mehar Syed Mohammad Shah and Advocate Zulifikar Ali Khokhar were among a large number of people who attended the soyem.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2018