SUKKUR: A gang of robbers opened fire on a family near Thull town of Jacobabad on Sunday night killing two persons and wounding two others.

One of the deceased persons, Asadullah Sundrani, was a policeman posted at the Jacobabad jail, and the other, Sulaiman Sundrani, was his cousin.

Police and local media people said that Wafardar Sundrani, a social activist, along with his two sons, Sulaiman and Dawood, and a nephew, Asadullah, was on his way back home in Jacobabad when a gang of dacoits intercepted their car near Thull town and started depriving them of their belongings. The family offered resistance upon which the dacoits opened fire killing 25-year-old Sulaiman, on the spot and wounding Asadullah, who later succumbed to his wounds while being transported to a hospital.

Wafardar immediately informed the Baho Khoso and C-Section police about the incident and called for a swift response, telling them that the gangsters had just left the spot but none from the two police stations could make it timely.

Armed bikers kill cop in Ghotki targeted attack

A number of people from the nearby localities gathered there and arranged transportation of the family to the Thull hospital. The doctors who examined the victims pronounced Sulaiman dead on arrival and referred Dawood and Asadullah to a major hospital due to their precarious condition. However, Asadullah succumbed to his wounds on the way, sources said.

A little after the incident, enraged residents of Baho Khoso and other areas assembled at the crime scene and staged a noisy demonstration against police for their failure to ensure safety and security of citizens. They condemned the Jacobabad police for having lost control of criminal gangs which, they said, were operating in the entire district fearlessly, kidnapping and killing people at their whim.

Jacobabad SSP Syed Sulaiman Shah proceeded to the protest venue and assured them of appropriate action agai­nst negligent police officials of the area.

He ordered suspension of the Baho Khoso SHO and an inquiry into his performance. He told the protesters that the gangsters involved in the incident would be arrested as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the dead bodies were handed over to the heirs who took them to their native village for burial after medico-legal formalities.

On Monday, a large number of Sundrani community members led by leaders of different political parties and social organisations attended funeral prayers of Sulaiman and Asadullah in their village.

Police operation

SSP Shah in the evening led a strong contingent of police to launch an operation in the nearby riverine area of Jacobabad in an extensive hunt for the gangsters.

The police demolished and torched a number of structures believed to be used by gangs as their hideouts.

The police said that raids were also conducted on various houses in Nandwani and Malhar villages within the jurisdiction of the Baho Khoso police station on suspicion of the killers of Sundrani community members having taken shelter there.

Several suspects were rounded up for interrogation, they said, adding that the search operation would continue till the arrest of the culprits.

Cop shot dead in Ghotki

Armed men riding a motorcycle shot dead a policeman, Ghulam Nabi Sahito, in a targeted attack late Sunday evening.

The policeman was driving through the by-pass within the jurisdiction of the C-Section police station of Ghotki district when he came under the attack. The assailants sped away after committing the crime near Shelton Hotel.

The police proceeded to the crime scene and shifted the body to the Ghotki Civil Hospital for a postmortem examination.

They cordoned off the area and mounted a search for the killers.

Ghulam Nabi Sahito was currently posted at the B-Section police station of Ghotki.

The body was handed over to the heirs after medico-legal formalities.

The martyred policeman’s funeral prayers were attended by senior police and Rangers officials, besides a large number of his family members, relatives and friends.

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2024