RAHIM YAR KHAN: Despite an ongoing police operation in the area, dacoits kidnapped three men from Chowk Mahi near Murid Shakh on Friday.

According to police, three men -- Ghulam Mustafa Mirani, Bakht Ali Mirani and Ali Nawaz Malik -- were going on Guddu Road when some dacoits kidnapped them.

Later, in a video uploaded on social media dacoits carrying latest weapons said in Sindhi language that police had picked up their three men and two women from a private hospital at Sadiqabad on Thursday.

Holding Sadiqabad Saddar station house officer (SHO) responsible for picking up the five persons, they warned that if the men and women were not released they would kill the kidnapped men, who were also shown in the footage.

Protesters block Guddu-Kashmor road against the incident

Reacting to the kidnapping, scores of people belonging to Mirani and Malik clans blocked Guddu-Kashmor road, near Daowala police checkpoint demanding recovery of the men. They alleged that Kot Sabzal SHO was incompetent and failed to maintain law and order in the area.

The kidnapping took place at a time when RYK police, with the coordination of Rajanpur and Ghotki police, were carrying out an intelligence-based operation led by District Police Officer (DPO) Akhtar Farooq near Chowk Mahi for the last few days.

Kidnapping of three men despite the presence of police in the area raised many questions about the law and order situation there.

In the video, the kidnapped persons were seen requesting the dacoits for their immediate release.

In a press release, police spokesperson Saif Ali Wains said the operation against dacoits in Kacha area and Sadiqabad circle was going on. He claimed that dacoits had shared the video to pressurise the police to halt the operation. On the instructions of the DPO a police team had been constituted to analyse the video, he said, adding that all resources would be used to nab the dacoits.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2022